Hello, Shoyan here. I’m a Japanese carpenter. I’ll now start building the staircase and divide the video into two parts. The staircase will start with a straight stair that goes up six steps. The next will be a winder stair with three fan-shaped steps and then four straight steps above it, making 14 steps to the second floor. I’ll start with making the three fan-shaped steps for the winder part.
First, I’ll cut and plane the stair material. This is my third video of building a staircase. All three times, the material has been the same local pinewood. Depending on the company and region, pinewood is the best material for conventional construction in my area. This is the usual scene of wood cutting. It looks like there are quite a lot of materials in stock. The lumberyard is shipping me extra material. Nowadays, very few pine trees have a large heartwood portion, so it depends on luck to get them.
This is because the logs are getting smaller, and the trees are not as old as they once were. The heartwood portion is large when the tree is old, even if the log is not thick. The pinewood was cut into a square in the log’s center during lumbering. Edges were cut large at that time and dried up for about two years. I’m using them as stair material this time. Since I’ve processed the staircase material, I’ll transport it using my car. Lumberyards deliver the materials to the workshop and deliver the cut materials to the job site. However, I haven’t had the lumberyard deliver any building materials until now. I do this because I don’t want other people to touch the materials that I’ve finished by myself. Well, it’s hard to transport them by myself. I’ve delivered the material to the job site, so I’ll begin building the stairs. Before that, I hadn’t installed the staircase’s support column. So I’ll measure the position of the steps on the top four steps and the tile around the woodstove to determine the column’s position.
Then, I’ll draw the full-scale drawing* based on the position of the column. It’s three steps in the shape of a fan, which will be the winder. I’m drawing the size and placement of the triangles on the winder in full scale. This can’t be calculated. I’ll use this to make the treads. There are no rules for drawing the full scale of the three-triangle tread. *1.18″-1.57″
Because people will walk 30-40cm* from a column, draw a circle in that area and divide the same dimension into three equal parts on the circle. That way, the place of the tread where we place our foot will be divided into three equal parts. All three treads won’t be attached to the same vertical position on the support column. The thickness of the column, the number of steps on top of the winder, and the position of the bottom vary from site to site. Therefore, even if the column is thin, the tread’s edge that attaches to the column must be 45 mm (1.771″) wide. It can be difficult to make it in the same position as the vertical when it’s 45 mm (1.771″), but it’s unnecessary to do so.
Now, I’ll install the support column first. I’ll join the floor beam and the column with a horizontal member. I’m cutting a notch into that part. I’ll use the horizontal member to join them in a simple way, so it doesn’t need to be thick. It’s the same standard as the support column. The support column is 4 m long, but the railing wall will run diagonally downward from the second floor, so I didn’t need such a long column. Earlier, I cut the mortise in the floor beam. I’ll cut a tenon with minor adjustments based on the placement of the mortise and the column that I measured. I’ll cut a 15 mm (.590″) notch into the horizontal member and column joint. It’s a simple insertion joint. I’ll cut off 15 mm (.590″), attach, and secure them.
As this column will only support three fan-shaped treads, I made it as thin as possible. I’ll install the railing wall directly to this column later and make it as thin as possible. I’ll install the support column. I’ll measure the vertical dimension of the column firmly and place it temporarily. Then, measure the dimensions of the horizontal member. I’ll attach the horizontal member and secure it with screws. I may remove the horizontal member later when installing straight steps above it. If I secure it only with screws, I can remove it later. I replaced the 30-year-old laser. This is a blue-green laser.
The full line will be displayed, both vertically and horizontally. The one I’ve been using was also made by Tajima. However, since I’ve been using it for 30 years, the line was fading. It wasn’t broken, but I’ve decided to buy a new one. Unlike the red line, I can see it clearly. I’ll check the level of the stairs with a laser. Because I’ll install the three fine-shaped steps in the middle, checking the level is important. Next, I’ll install the winder tread on the column based on the laser line. I’ll make the markings on the support column using the full-scale drawing I showed earlier. I don’t hesitate and cut off by 15 mm (.590″) even though the column is thin. Also, cut a 15 mm (.590″) notch into the columns and the studs on the wall. I’ll notch the column for the treads. Support material can't be installed in this column since the riser will be installed. *1.77″ width and .590″ depth
So, install the tread at 45 mm width and 15 mm depth* to the columns to make it sturdy.
As you can see, the column is thin. But I’ll cut off this amount and install the tread firmly. I’ll install support materials on the notch of the columns and studs. The inner wall behind the outer wall is not so thick, *1.18″ by 4.72″
so I’ll use 30 mm by 120 mm* typical studs as a support material. I can install the stairs on the front of the studs without cutting notches into them. But the corner of the riser will be tricky to install. Additionally, when I screw the tread from the top, the screws come out of the inner side of the columns. For that reason, I’ll install the support material on the wall side between the studs. As a result, the treads will be installed on the wall side, and the boards will also have more surface to be covered. This reduces the risk of cracking. Now, I’ll make the three treads of the winder part.
The treads’ shapes are still triangles, but I’ll join two or three boards and make it into a fan. Join means sticking together, so I’ll plane both sides straight for them to stick together well. Then, I place the tread on the full-scale drawing I made earlier and trace it. I cut the material 2 m (6.56 ft) long. I’ll cut it to the proper length, attach the two pieces together, and shape it. I made it 2 m (6.56 ft) when I processed the wood, and I’m going to make two or three pieces from it. It’s all about joining together pieces from the same wood. That is the most important thing. By doing so, the luster and grain pattern will be the same. I’ve temporarily put the two treads together.
Next, I’ll attach it with glue. The glue is a quick-drying urethane glue that I always use. If I spread a thin layer of this glue and apply pressure, it’ll harden very quickly. However, if the overflowed part gets on my hands, it can be quite troublesome, which is the most annoying part. And the container. It’s made in Germany, and the glue itself is a great product, but they don’t put much effort into the container. So, it isn’t easy to use. The first tread has been completed. I’ll make the second and third one in the same way on the full-size drawing. The glue has dried completely, so I’ll cut the protruding parts with a cutter. Since this is urethane glue, the protruding glue will become a sponge.
I can easily cut those parts with a cutter. Next, I’ll plane it using an electric plane according to the marks I made at first. Since it’s tough to plane it with a hand plane from the start, I’ll use an electric plane to do the job. In the area where the riser will be attached, I’ll plane it a bit angled on the backside to make attaching it easier. Then, I’ll cut a notch on the tread where it overlaps the brace. I’ll chamfer the cut end to prevent it from chipping when something hits. Then, I’ll do kigoroshi on the part that goes into the column. I‘ll temporarily install it to make sure it fits. While temporarily installing it, I’ll also measure the actual length of the anti-slip. I made an anti-slip surface for the stile on the top of the staircase. I’ll also measure that length with a ruler. I’ll decide on the stringer’s location and draw the actual length of it by balancing the whole thing.
I’ll make an anti-slip groove on the top edge of the tread. The anti-slip is simple, with a round blade and only one light groove. Although I can shift the position and make two grooves, I only made one. On the backside of the tread, 30 mm (1.18″) from the edge, I’ll cut a groove for the riser. I’ll sharpen a hand plane’s blade before finishing the tread. The place that I’m sharpening is on the entrance stairs. I can use any place to sharpen the blade. Now, I’ll finish the tread. I’ve already planed the surface with a super surfacer, but there’s a difference in level when joining. So I’ll plane it lightly to level it and fix the place that is torn out. The stairs are for a winder, so their shape is tricky to plane. I’ll be careful not to damage it by tipping it over. Pinewood is a material that is easy to plane. When planed, the luster comes out because it’s resinous. I’ve finished planing the treads. Now I’ll install them. First, place three treads to check the whole balance and determine the position.
I’ll take measurements from the surrounding columns. After that, I’ll align the front sides of the three treads. Next, I’ll make a pilot hole to prevent the wood from cracking, then screw it firmly into place. There are three treads, so I’ll install two risers. *Three shaku: 90.9 cm or 2.98 ft
Since it’s fan-shaped, it’ll be a little longer than three shaku.* I’ll widely chamfer at the front of the riser’s top edge.
Before installing, I’ll apply glue firmly to both ends. On the winder part, there will be no stringer, so the cut ends of the riser will be exposed to the air and dried. I’ll apply glue to the ends to prevent them from cracking. *2.56″ and 1.97″
I’ll use 65 mm and 50 mm* screws to secure them. At last, I’ll apply the glue to the joint between the risers and the treads. Interior construction problems usually occur at staircases. The stairs are made of many solid materials, so when they dry out, they crack and squeak.
I use both screws and glue to prevent this from happening. At the same time, I apply glue to the cut end of the treads and everywhere else I can. Although this staircase is not exposed to the sun, it could be so for another site. In such a case, it’ll crack easily. So I always apply glue to the cut end to prevent cracking. Now, I’ve processed the stairs, installed the support column, and completed the winder. I spent three full days installing it. The next time, I’ll make six straight stairs, then four steps to the left, totaling 14 steps. I’ll make two sets of straight stairs. That’s all for today. Thanks for watching!.