24 



HARDWOOD RECORD 



Utilization of HardWoods 



ARTICLE XL 

 STAIR WORK 



A trip through the shop of A. D. Lindquist 

 & Co., a Chicago firm of stair builders, re- 

 sulted in the information contained in the fol- 

 lowing article. As with kindred specialized 

 industries, stair building is a trade in itself, 

 requiring a thorough and lengthy apprentice- 

 ship under the supervision of a recognized con- 

 cern in this line, and not as a cabinet maker, 

 as is often erroneously supposed. 



Orders are always first worked up in the 

 shop by the regular force, and all parts are 

 there fitted and suitably marked. The instal- 

 lation is then a comparatively simple process, 



usually being taken care of by specially em- 

 ployed men. 



Among the woods employed in the stair 

 industry, oak, maple, poplar, pine and similar 

 woods to a lesser degree, are the most import- 

 ant; oak, of course, forms the largest percent- 



mahogany stain, for railings. This makes an 

 attractive and inexpensive stair. Maple, like 

 oak, is employed with no coloring, but is not 

 extensively manufactured for this purpose. It 

 goes almost without saying that panels are 

 made from built-up veneer, three- or five-ply 

 being most commonly used. 



As before stated, all parts are manufactured 

 at the mills, an up-to-date stair-plant being 

 equipped with the usual band saws, resaws, 

 trimmers, planers, tongue and groove machines. 



TWO HANDSOME NEWEL POSTS 



age of consumption. There are various com- 

 binations of woods and colors in common use ; 

 oak is, practically without exception, finished 

 in the natural color, as in other lines, and is 

 used for all parts, though most extensively 

 for steps. While the figure and physical qual- 

 ities of birch would merit similar recognition, 

 th3 popular decree demands that it be ignomin- 

 iously daubed with stains to imitate the ap- 

 pearance of mahogany. It is rather widely 

 employed in that guise, and is put mostly into 

 railings, balusters and others parts not sub- 

 jected to any great wear. The softness of 

 poplar is prohibitive of its use in steps, but 

 it finds wide application as railings, balusters, 

 panels, newels, etc. The qualities of poplar 

 need no dwelling upon, and it is easily compre- 

 hended why this wood is called for when the 

 finish is not to be in the natural color, it 

 always being white-enameled. A favorite com- 

 bination among architects is, oak finished 

 naturally for steps, white-enameled poplar for 

 panels, facings and balusters, and birch, with 



and besides, such special appliances as shapers 

 and routers. Step stuff forms a separate 

 article in a hardwood lumber yard, and is sold 

 by them to the stair builders in that form; 

 indeed, except with the large concerns, it 

 might be said that all parts are manufactured 

 from dimension stock, which must, of course, 

 be up to certain requirements as to quality. 



The manufacture of steps is a comparatively 

 simple operation, being performed principally 

 with a saw and router, sawing to dimension 

 being the first operation. In stair construc- 

 tion the risers and treads are joined firmly by 

 means of grooves housed out of each, into 

 which the edge of the other fits. To be spe- 

 cific, the risers are grooved on the front face 

 near the base, the cut being one-quarter inch, 

 deep and receiving a tongue on the tread one- 

 half inch in width ; under the tread is a groove 

 one-quarter inch deep, receiving the upper edge 

 of the riser. All joints are grooved and rein- 

 forced by triangular glue-blocks in the angle 

 beneath. 



There are two types of stairs; in one the 

 stringer sets against the step ends and receives 

 the balusters on its top edge, and in the other 

 the steps rest on top of the stringer, the latter 

 being cut in accordance. In the first case, 

 steps and risers are set in housing on the inner 

 surface of the stringer and held firmly by 

 means of wedges. An accompanying cut, 

 showing work done by the Kelley Electric 



