Step 26c – Complete Top Railing and Apply Clear Coat

The top of the spiral staircase is finished off with a wooden newel and ballusters were placed all around the perimeter of the landing. Again, it is important to notch the ballusters so they lock into the landing, and also to ensure a 4″ sphere cannot pass between any of the ballusters.

I used a router and some scrap pine wood to build a railing for the ballusters at the top of the landing and then added a couple of metal ‘l’ brackets to bolt the ends of the railing to the wall. If I had really planned things out well, I would have installed some extra blocking in the wall so the bracket could have been screwed into wood. Unfortunately I didn’t so I had to use drywall anchors to attach the railing to the drywall.

I used the same brackets to attach the ends of the hand railing of the spiral to the wall. This makes it just a little less wobbly when you are really pulling on it.

I finished off the spiral with several coats of clear coat varnish. This will protect it and also gives it a little bit of shine. I also used some black spray paint to cover up the manufacturers lettering on the steel pipe that acts as a center pole.

The only part I have left will be to install some trim where the second story flooring meets the edge of the landing, but that will have to wait until the flooring is installed. The flooring will go over the top of the landing and the trim will extend down the edge to cover the transition from wood to plywood to top tread.