Began project by installing new treads and risers. Risers are 1/2×8 pre-primed particleboard trim cut to fit, treads are red oak modern retread, 5/8″ thick with left hand mitered return 2″ square nosing. Though it doesn’t look like it, the staircase is all kinds of outta whack with regards to square. It took a big effort to keep the gaps 1/16″ and smaller.
Once the surfaces were finished I could get to measurin’ for the banister. The challenge was to keep the inward banister side mounted flush with the drywall. So I calculated what I needed for materials and got to searching for the steel balusters, which, at 7′ lengths and roughly 5/8″ thickness, was the most challenging material to hunt down and purchase. I eventually found 21′ sticks of sched.40 steel pipe at Western Steel in Aberdeen, and cut 4 sticks down to 7 feet in their parking lot. Brought the steel home to the shop, wiped it down thoroughly with lacquer thinner, and sprayed three coats with two cans of semi-gloss black rustoleum protective enamel. With the baluster material finally sourced, the next step was to figure out the wood. The Seilers are very awesome communicators, they knew exactly what they wanted, made quick decisions when I presented them with challenges and options, and together our concisely communicated shared vision began to piece itself into fruition. I ended up sourcing the red oak for the banister from the depot, and purchased a foot more per piece than needed to accommodate for the angles. Speaking of angles, this project warranted the purchase of a digital angle finder and a rockler drill guide jig to get the baluster holes absolutely perfect. 34.3*. Three 1×3 redoak planks were glued together to form each required piece. For the joinery I simply left some extra material so that sanding everything flush afterward was a breeze. Setting the posts was a challenge since the treads weren’t square, but after some chiseling and a bit of help from the oscillator tool I got them dialed in, fastened with timberloks.
I drilled the center post holes all the way through for ease of assembly. I slipped the bottom balusters in first, from above, marked after bottom-out, and cut them square so that they rested halfway through the center post. Then, I drilled the top holes extra deep, marked and cut so that gravity brought them to rest 1.5″ into the top holes. To lock them in, I pre-drilled and drifted a 2″ 6D finish nail just past the end of the bars on the top end.
The last step was to cut and mount a handrail. I sourced the oak from the depot, cut it to proper length and angle and mounted them on black corner ties. I mounted blocks under the rail to elevate it above the brackets and keep user hands from catching on the bracketry. Everything was sanded to 220 for future sealing by the new buyer. Holy cow what a project, what an experience, and what a fantastic learning opportunity! Raymond, WA; June 2021