In article , Doctor
wrote:

After spending too much time trying to find plans for a spiral staircase, or
a kit for a reasonable cost, I've decided to start from scratch and make my
own. What I plan to do is weld 4" angle iron "tread brackets" to a 3" pipe
at 30 degree spacing (all material is 1/8 inch). Each tread is 8 " higher
than the next one - this gives 11 treads for an 88 inch rise. I'll cut a 1
1/2" radius curve into the horizontal part of the angle iron to match the
pipe I'm welding it to. The tread brackets will have welds on both sides of
the vertical and horizontal surfaces. Then I'm going to drill and bolt 2 by
12 wooden tread to each bracket. Brackets will probably be 36 to 40" long
as will wooden treads. I still haven't figured out the balusters, but
probably will use a single rod welded to each tread bracket and somehow
curve a metal railing for a hand rail (the rail will be a problem). This
may sound like a lot of work, but I have all the materials on hand, a Miller
175 MIG welder and a plasma cutter. There are only 11 treads to attach, so
I can get this part cut and done in a day, provided I can layout the degree
spacing without botching it. The big problem I see is the railing, but I do
have a small bender which I could bend short sections of pip in, and weld
them together as I work my way up. I looked for kits, and none had wooden
treads for less than about $2500 shipped to me in Colorado, so I have some
financial incentive. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks for being
a great group.

John




I do a lot of staircases.
All steel, sometimes with wood treads.

Whenever somebody asks for a spiral I refer them to any of 3 shops in
Seattle who do nothing but spirals.
I don't mind installing it and adding detail stuff, but it is just more
practical to have the stair fabbed by the guys with all the jigs and
experience.
I have built spirals from scratch, and it is just too much space and
time.