Tips for fitting a newel post on your central staircase

Installing a new staircase can be an arduous undertaking if you aren't a professional carpenter or stair builder. However, sometimes{occasionally?} you want to update the look of your flight of stairs in your main foyer without investing in a whole new structure altogether. In fact, sometimes just replacing a few individual stair parts will work wonders in changing the entire aesthetic of this part of your home, updating a look that may now be out of fashion.

The main focal point of any staircase tends to be the newel posts that affix to the base of your staircase. If you currently have box newels or turned newels that under whelm, you can replace them with posts that actually attach to the skirting of the structure. However, to do this, you may need to saw off a bit of the skirting at the landing so that the post will secure correctly.

When you do this, you want to be as careful as possible about removing only the necessary amount of wood needed to affix the post - no more, no less. You can do this by attaching a straight-edge block to the skirting by taking a few place holder nails into the structure. Make sure to measure the piece is balanced and the spacing is perfectly measured to avoid mistakes and limit the amount of holes you'll need to hammer into your flight. Using a Japanese pull saw, you should be able to make a clean, straight cut down the skirting adjacent to the fixed block used for measuring.

You can choose the perfect newel post for your staircase by perusing Stair Parts USA's collection of box and turned designs online.