Mitring and joining stair handrail - zipbolts?

[n-hatton]

Hi all.


Looking for advice regarding mitring and joining stair handrail - mopstick (50mm?).

Customer wants two rails for elderly parent - currently only has handrail halfway up the stairs! Top of stairs has a small landing that you use to do a 90deg turn then a final single step up to the full landing.

Will need to do a number of mitred joints - some changing both in direction and elevation! Most Googled advice says simply mitre and glue - leaving overnight! Haven't got time to do this, too many mitres to do, and concerned joints may simply open up with use.

Has anyone used these zipbolts? http://www.rutlands.co.uk/cabinet-h...s/worktop-connectors/C3601/worktop-connectors
Or these ones? http://www.noawebsites.eu/quaytechuk/11700.html

At top of the stairs, I have to mitre the "inside" handrail around the top newel post - 270degress - basically round three faces of the post. Previously done this by using a 50mm hole cutter to cut one end - drill through and screw, then sand off all the excess. Joint looked a bit like joining hollow pipework - if you know what I mean? However, on this one have to take into account the rail is also rising!

Wonder if clamps will solve all?


Cheers,
Neil

 

[n-hatton]

P.S. Something just noticed - clamp ends of the zipbolt reqires a 25mm hole. Not sure of if that's wider than the flat face of the underside of handrail and therfore will protrude and edges of hole become visable ?!

 

[Newboy21]

I fit and mitre loads of hand rails and never use those bolts as they are hassle and bump up the cost of materials.
Instead, I glue the mitre and pin it in position with a dewalt nailgun. I then use a 12mm auger bit to drill a hole about 10mm deep and then pilot it for a 100mm screw. Fill the hole with a wooden pellet - you can either buy them or buy a pellet cutter and cut the pellet from an offcut of handrail so you have an exact colour match. Leave it protruding then when the glue had gone off use a block plane or sharp chisel to clean it up, shaping it to the handrail and then sand up.
Staircases have draw dowels all over them so pellets never look out of place and are more like a feature. It takes very little time. Make sure you get the perfect too.

 

[n-hatton]

Newboy.

Sorry.... many thanks for your suggestion. Followed it - with some difficulty as I don't have a nail gun - but job finished using all your other avdice and brilliant result


Cheers,

Neil