Stair Railing Installation & Finishing

Installation & Finishing Tips

Finishing Your Newel Posts

Your newel posts come fully hand sanded and ready to be stained and sealed. We recommend that your painter do a final light sanding before final applications to remove any fingerprints from handling the wood. It is important to get finish on the product as soon as possible. Product left sitting without finish will risk cracking. Wood is a dynamic product that responds to changes in temperature and humidity. Applying finish to the wood, seals and hardens the wood preserving its longevity and durability.

We recommend speaking to your local paint and stain experts for advice about how and what the best products are to finish your wood products to achieve your unique style. That being said, DO NOT use a gel stain. Stains in a gel base can eat away at glue, glue is used to laminate wood together, risking the integrity of the product it is being applied to.

Installing Square Balusters/Spindles

There are many ways to install our products. Here are some helpful tips to guide you in the process.

Our company always installs by cutting mortises (square holes) into the shoe and railing. This is done with the use of a mortising machine but can also be done by drilling a round hole and cutting it square with a mortising chisel by hand. This gives a very clean professional look, it is the best way to install square spindles. However there are other methods that will work. You could use a dadoed (grooved) shoe and rail and use fillet/filler strips to fill in between the spindles. Another option is to drill and insert dowels or anchors into the shoe and railing that the spindles can be set over top of. On stair railing some people will screw through the face of the spindle into the shoe and railing.

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