Made a spiral staircase railing for my cabin
The spiral staircase in my cabin originally had a plastic pipe for a railing, functional, but far from ideal. I looked into replacing it with something better and got quotes for several custom options, since the staircase was handmade and the center post also supports the loft. Every quote came in over $3,000, which sent me down the DIY rabbit hole. I found some prefab bendable spiral railing kits, but they were overpriced and not nearly wide enough. Plus, my staircase needs 18 feet of railing, and the kits only come in 16 foot sections, meaning I’d have to buy extra. Just the materials would’ve cost around $2,000, and I had zero experience installing them. Instead, I got creative. I picked up two 2x8x10 cedar boards and ripped them into 1/4 inch strips lengthwise, would’ve used a 20 foot board if I had a way to transport it. I staggered and glued the strips, clamping them tightly as I bent them around the curve. After testing various thicknesses, 1/4 inch turned out to be perfect for the radius. If I did it again, I’d skip the cedar, too many knots. I applied wood glue with a roller, offset each strip by two inches, and used 40 clamps I picked up from Harbor Freight for about $110. The boards cost $8 each, and I went through seven 60 grit sanding pads on the orbital sander. All in all, the project took me 8 hours and saved me thousands. submitted by /u/johnny_rocket9000 [link] [comments]
| | The spiral staircase in my cabin originally had a plastic pipe for a railing, functional, but far from ideal. I looked into replacing it with something better and got quotes for several custom options, since the staircase was handmade and the center post also supports the loft. Every quote came in over $3,000, which sent me down the DIY rabbit hole. I found some prefab bendable spiral railing kits, but they were overpriced and not nearly wide enough. Plus, my staircase needs 18 feet of railing, and the kits only come in 16 foot sections, meaning I’d have to buy extra. Just the materials would’ve cost around $2,000, and I had zero experience installing them. Instead, I got creative. I picked up two 2x8x10 cedar boards and ripped them into 1/4 inch strips lengthwise, would’ve used a 20 foot board if I had a way to transport it. I staggered and glued the strips, clamping them tightly as I bent them around the curve. After testing various thicknesses, 1/4 inch turned out to be perfect for the radius. If I did it again, I’d skip the cedar, too many knots. I applied wood glue with a roller, offset each strip by two inches, and used 40 clamps I picked up from Harbor Freight for about $110. The boards cost $8 each, and I went through seven 60 grit sanding pads on the orbital sander. All in all, the project took me 8 hours and saved me thousands. [link] [comments] |
