Last week I made some Oak handrailing and matching newel caps for a client of mine.

They have a 1930's house and wanted to update the staircase.

The existing hand rail was made from mahogany and was very good quality but the client wanted to have oak to match the flooring they had put throughout the ground floor.

Instead of spindles there were painted plywood panels which did look quite dated.

 
 

 
 

The Design.

I was supplied with the spindles and base rail which were in hemlock.

I had to make the handrail and newel caps .

The handrail was to match the existing mahogany one exactly and I had to design suitable newel caps.

First of all I made a scale drawing of the handrail as I did not have the original to copy.

This was because I could not remove the original until I had the new one to replace it as it would have been unsafe.

I took accurate measurements and produced the drawing.

With this I could choose which router cutters I wanted to use.

The newel caps were to be flat and the rest of the shape was down to me.
 
 

 
 

Making the Handrail and Newel Caps.

 
 

I have filmed the process and I am making a video showing how I made the hand rail which will be out this week.

I intend to make more and more videos showing the various projects I work on each week.

 
 

 
 

Installation.

This is what today's post if really about.

Adjusting a staircase can be awkward sometimes and once you start you really need to get it finished.

I started at the top of the stairs with the return section of handrail.

I cut the handrail accurately with a fine Japanese saw. I carefully followed the angle so that the client could retain the original.

I then unscrewed the wall bracket .

I cut my new piece of handrail at exactly the same angles with the mitre saw, leaving it 2" over length for the tenon.

After cleaning out the old post mortise I cut the tenon by hand .

Once this was fitted tightly I glued it in place and pulled the joint up tight with a long screw.

Now that I had done the 'test run' I started on the main section.

I cut through the old handrail (again accurately at the post joints) and removed it and the panelled section.

The base rail was cut to length and screwed into the stair string.

Now I needed to fit the new oak piece in between the two fixed posts.

I had one chance at this. I wanted a short tenon at the bottom and then I would use 6" coach screws to really give it strength.

I measured twice and cut once and when I was satisfied with the fit I glued and screwed it in place.

I used a couple of pre cut spindles as spacers to ensure the handrail was parallel.

When everything was dry and solid I turned my attention to the spindles.

I cut them all to length and placed them at the bottom of the opening.

This was so I could take a horizontal measurement of the gap left which I needed to divide into equal spaces.

In the UK building regulations stipulate that a 100mm sphere should not be able to pass through any part of the balustrade.

This is for child saftey. I had ten spindles and therefore 11 spaces which worked out at 96.5 mm.

The spindles locate in a grove top and bottom and then have fillets fitted and fixed in between them .

One good tip I picked up is that when you have three spindles left to fit , re measure and divide the spaces.

This is so that if a small error has accumulated over the run it is better to spread it out over four spaces rather than have it very noticeable on the last space.

Newel Caps.

By hand I cut the old newel caps off which were an integral part of the post.

I then marked a centre point on the top of the posts and the underside of the caps and drilled an 18mm hole.

I then simply used an 18mm oak dowel to locate the caps and glued them in place.

And my work there was done, The client was going to paint the spindles and base rail.

 
 

 
 

If you have any questions about woodwork, furniture or being self employed as a crafts person let me know.

I know my wood and I have spent years teaching myself furniture making , furniture history as well as living it as a self employed cabinet maker .

I am also in the process of writing a

'How to series: Setting up a Woodworking Business'

Which you can read here;
Part 1: Workshop
Part 2: Tools and machinery
Part 3: Finding a good timber yard
Part 4: Deciding what type of woodwork you are going to do.
Part 5: Advertising and getting customers
Part 6: Dealing with Customers.

Still I am learning every day and the journey is the point.
We have started a woodworking community here on steemit and would welcome you. We have a discord channel, link here: Woodworking on Steem Discord Channel And a weekly woodworking post competition ,
you can read the post here

 
 

 
 
@woodworkcurators is a daily curation service for the woodworking community.

You can read about us here
 
 

 
 

Steemfollower is a great way to get more upvotes from like minded steemians.
 
 

 
 

Many thanks for reading,

Until next time,

@jist