Open (floating) curved staircase

[Eric Wheeler]

I was wondering if anyone has built, or atleast seen how to build a curved staircase that is open/floating underneath? As in no walls underneath supporting it. I've seen them on TV a few times...their may be a couple pillars for support, can't recall. But no wall the entire length, which is the way I have seen (and built) curved stairs in real life.

[Paul Murphy]

PM Richard Wolf, he builds beautiful staircases.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/member.php?u=3927

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=50595&highlight=curved+staircase

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=50854&highlight=curved+staircase

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/search.php?searchid=4409266

[Eric Wheeler]

PM Richard Wolf, he builds beautiful staircases.
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/member.php?u=3927

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=50595&highlight=curved+staircase

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=50854&highlight=curved+staircase

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/search.php?searchid=4409266

Yeah, I did a search but I didn't see any open/floating ones, not to say it doesn't exist here, but everything I opened wasn't what I was looking for...I have seen some of Richards work on here, in fact it is how I stumbled on this forum I did a google search for curved stairs years ago, and one of his threads popped up.

Anyway, I don't much like PMing people I don't know and haven't responded on my thread...some people get annoyed with that, atleast in other forums I frequent. So hopefully he will see this and chime in.

Thanks

[John Gornall]

Google "amazing staircases" both web search and image search.

[Eric Wheeler]

Google "amazing staircases" both web search and image search.

Thanks for the tip...For whatever reason, when I am writing a paper or letter or anything, I can come up with many different ways to say/reword things...but when it comes to finding something on the web, my mind just doesn't function the same way.

Anyway, something like this is exactly what I want...not necessarily the finished look, but the general shape of the stairs is exactly what I want...how would one build these? From reading some threads on here (I think the ones that someone linked in this thread) would it be using 1/4" ply like sandwiched together to be like 1-1/2" for each stringer?

[Richard Wolf]

If you go to my website, the first picture is a curved floating staircase. I'm not sure I can link it here;

wrailings.com (cut & paste into your browser)

The basic requirements are extra wide stringers, I believe we used 2 1/2" in the picture, and extra sound anchor points in the floor and second floor header.

Richard

[Gordon Eyre]

Here is a floating staircase built by a contractor friend of mine. I took the image using an infrared camera so the colors are off but you will get the idea:

http://www.pbase.com/greyflash/image/80467202/original.jpg

[Erik Christensen]

it was a step by step how to that showed how one contractor had built a free floating curved stairway.

he basically built the frame around a full sized plywood cutout of the stair pathway (one bottom & one top piece), used 2" thick stock for the treads & risers, sheathed it in several layers of ply outside & inside the railings and then cut away the frame members after the sheathing was applied and it was self supporting

pm me if you want me to scan that article and send it your way