Stairway design...mixed media

[Mark Singer]

I completed this home about 4 years ago. The stairway I designed is made of solid walnut treads, steel stringers, and a stainless steel handrail. The components are designed to remain as seperate elements....in this way the clarity of each element and its purpose is expressed. The stainless work is again done by Frank Smart of Metalworks. My son,Ryan spent a summer working with Frank while he was going to architecture school at CalPoly, SLO. Frank is truly an artist and has been showing his work each year at the prestigous "Pagenant of The Masters" in Laguna...(something I have thought about ,but, I don't want to give up my summer sitting there). He has done all of the stainless work on my furniture that I have posted on SMC. The details for this stairway have evolved through a series of stairs we have worked on together over 15 years. It is great to collaborate with great people you know . The stainless is detailed for ease of construction by minimizing field welding. The wood treads are joined 8/4 solid walnut and are bolted through cantilever "ships Tees" from the bottom. This floating detail I first used about 20 years ago.

The "Maison de Ver" in Paris has been a favorite resource of mine for steel detailing for years. Built in the 1920's, it was a collaboration of Architect,Pierre Chareau and master ironsmith, Louis Dalbet. It is said that Corbusier secretly visited the site each day in quite admiration...It is nice to pay homage to the masters who layed the foundation for fine design in the 20th century

[Dave Avery]

Mark,

As is usual with your work, just too cool. Love the design. Thanks for inspiring the rest of us. Dave.

[Scott Coffelt]

I just love that style, the finish on the steps looks great. Like they have never been stepped on. Very cool.

[Brad Schafer]

while i am not a fan of this design genre, the walnut certainly finished up well. i also like the stair lighting, which is both functional and aesthetically pleasing.


b

[Eric Naessens]

Beautiful stairway - I love the way the walnut and steel look together. As mentioned above, the lighting does an excellent job highlighting the figure of the wood as well, and really makes the entire stairwell come alive. Thanks for posting the pictures.

[Jim Becker]

Once again, I'm totally impressed with your sense of style in blending materials. That stairway wouldn't work in our house, but it sure do in the one you put it in! Wonderful walnut, too.

[Ken Fitzgerald]

As usual, Mark your designs and eye for detail simply amaze me! The stairway is elegant, simple with contasting materials and functional. WOW!

[Chris Padilla]

Blah, blah, blah...yeah, yeah, yeah...Mark's work is exemplary. Tell me something new.... :p

Mark, show us the underside...I don't quite follow the mounting technique you used: cantilever ship tees?? :confused:

Oh, almost forgot: :eek: Stupendous!!

:D

Edit: Those treads look bookmatched!!! Yikes! :eek:

[Steve Inniss]

Beautiful.

I second Chris' question - cantilever ship tees? What's with that?

[Alan Turner]

Mark,
You say that the treads are solid walnut, but the ends look like side grain, not end grain. If so, how did you do that without having either the treads split, or the end caps loosen? Is there a stopped T&G in there somewhere? Just curious. It is a wonderful use of materials and design.
Alan

[Mark Singer]

Chris and steve ,
Here is the detail...Shps T's are actually "I" beams cut in half. It is a standard section and is in the Steel manual.

[Mark Singer]

Alan,
Very good observation. The ends are routed to accept an end cap. The caps are resawn from solid stock and set in at the roundover. It was not my preference..the owner did not like the end grain. It is a detail I use on Granite counters.

[Jim Becker]

Sure do wish you lived in this area, Mark...LOML and I are going to need an architect at some point for an addition and your creativity would be a real treat! :D

[John Miliunas]

Hey Mark, I can see that your idea of, "...back to the drawing board" is a whole lot different than mine. I typically do it in an attempt to fix something I screwed up! Yup, like I've said before, you're truly an artist. Very neat look! Thanks for sharing! :cool:

[Ryan Singer]

that's my dad! proud of em... ok.. time for me to start working on some furniture so I can do a post.

[Mark Singer]

I really appreciate the comments.Thank you. The stairway is really more about design the woodworking. The details are important as they always are. I am thinking of posting some short threads with one simple detail on each and numbering them so they can be used as a reference.Some of the woodworkers on SMC already will know most of them ...but I think it will be good and could simplify and improve many projects...I will start tomorrow.
Thanks again guys...It is great that we can learn from each other...

[Chris Padilla]

Alan,
Very good observation. The ends are routed to accept an end cap. The caps are resawn from solid stock and set in at the roundover. It was not my preference..the owner did not like the end grain. It is a detail I use on Granite counters.

There are a set of router bits from Michael Burgess (www.burgessedge.com (http://www.burgessedge.com)) that will edge-band plywood in a similar fashion to what you did, Mark, on the end-grain of the walnut boards. I have a set of these bits and I will never go back to my cove/roundover bit combo I use to use. This is very fast and easy to do. They can be made to work on thicker plywood (like all the laminations of plywood I seem to be doing lately), too, but take a lot more time.

I asked Michael about thicker wood/ply and he said he is working on just such a set but that it wil be made for a shaper rather than a router table. :(

[Jim Becker]

There are a set of router bits ...that will edge-band plywood in a similar fashion to what you did, Mark, on the end-grain of the walnut boards. (

Eagle America has something like this in their catalog now that provides a means to incorporate solid stock "into" the edge of sheet goods (and presumably solid stock) in the same manner.

[Dan Stuewe]

I just wanted to comment on Ryan's choice of architecture schools and the reference to the Pageant of the Masters.

Both my wife and I are Cal Poly alums ('92 and '94), although not arch. BTW, I've been meaning to ask a professional about this...what do you think of Cal Poly's architecture building? Was it someone's senior project?

Also, making a trip to Laguna in the summer should be somewhere on the life-long "too-do" list. As Mark mentioned it isn't just painters showing their work.

Thanks Mark for helping to make SMC an extra special spot for us.

[Mark Singer]

Dan,
Cal Poly is a gret school! Perhaps Ryan can coment on the building you are refering to . I have been on Campus numerous times... I even lectured in the new lecture hall...That must be the building you are refering to. For more on Laguna, I have a post several weeks ago about the Laguna Legacy and a flying table I made. It is a pleasure to share this forum with you!

[Ryan Singer]

Dan--

if you are talking about the big concrete building that's been there since the early 80's, no it's not a senior project... it's an interesting building. alot of people hate it. I think it's interesting to expose the "guts" of the building like that. I don't know about painting all the big ducts orange like they did...

I love CalPoly, San Luis Obispo!

warm regards to you and your wife,
Ryan

[Bob Marino]

Mark,

As always, a knockout design and execution; the blending of steel and wood is stunning. What is the finish on the walnut? Looks almost too beautiful to walk on.

Bob

[Mark Singer]

Chris and Jim,
That looks like a great router bit set up....its another one of those things you have been doing for years and somebody turns the idea into an invention....Veener is too thin on treads and you would see the flitch on edge.

Bob,
Thanks,
The finish is a waterbase satin polyurethane...I did not apply it but I can tell because the oil base yellows from UV and the stairway is under a large skylight

[Daniel Rabinovitz]

Mark
Absolutely beautiful!
Daniel :cool:

[Robert Goodwin]

Too pretty to step on....

Great work as usual..

Rob