Extreme How-To – September 2019

first screw down the threaded

metal discs at each baluster

location. Next, screw the pivot-

ing ball adaptor to the baluster’s

corresponding location beneath

the rail. Cut the metal baluster

to length on a chop saw. Slide

the base collar over the baluster

shaft, and insert the upper tip of

the baluster into the ball adaptor.

Tilt the baluster down over the

mounting plate, slide the base

collar down over the threaded

disc, then screw it firmly in place.

Tighten a couple of set screws,

and baluster installation is com-

plete.

Repeat for all balusters.

VICTORY LAP

That’s the basics of this stair-

rail project. We installed the

guard-rail at the upper landing

against the half newel using L.J.

Smith’s Flush Mount Hardware,

which conceals the fastener. The

upper landing also got a lower

shoe rail to conceal an unsightly

floor/trim transition along the

edge. We also installed a second-

ary rail along the lower stair flight

using wall-mount brackets.

After the rail system is installed,

you should expect a lot of touchup

work, such as adding wood plugs,

filling nail holes with putty, caulk-

ing joints, etc. But all the time,

work and attention to detail will

be worth it, once you show off

your new stair rail installation to

friends and neighbors.

For more information on L.J.

Smith Stair Systems, visit

http://www.ljsmith.com.

ExtremeHowTo.com 43

We used L.J. Smith’s flush-mount

fastener to anchor the guard rail

to the half newel.

The flush-mount kit conceals

the fastener, and all the other

fastener holes in the rail system

can be repaired with matching

wood plugs.

The finished

project is a

thing of beauty.

EHT

StairRailFeatureEDIT.qxp_Layout 1 6/24/19 1:11 PM Page 43