I would like to top off a metal railing with a wood banister/top. Any ideas how to fit it on there? ?

Question

In front of my 1970's home, there is a cast iron railing embedded into a concrete landing. I'd like to encase the top rail with a wood banister and paint the entire railing red to match the trim on my house. Any ideas on how to fit it on? The railing likely cannot be drilled through.

Answer 1

I agree with the previous poster. You'll want to route a channel into the underside of the wooden railing such that it creates a pocket for the metal rail to sit in. A good outdoor adhesive should do the trick (http://www.liquidnails.com/products/prod... But make sure the surface you are gluing the wood onto is solid, otherwise the glue will pull up any lose paint, etc. A good test is to take a 12" strip of strong tape (duct tape is good), put it on the railing and make sure you have a good bond, then remove the tape. If the tape pulls up the paint with it, you'll need to remove the loose paint before you apply the liquid nails.

On another note, you should be able to drill through the iron rail to place screws (they would come up from the underside) to pull the wood rail down onto the iron rail. To drill it, you will need a sharp set of drill bits, a good drill and some cutting oil. Suggest you drill piolt holes first (no more than 1/8" dia) then follow up in 1/16" increments until you get to your desired size hole. (Using such small increments for the drill size is conservative, but by doing so, your less likely to have the drill grab.)

Good luck!

Answer 2

I would use a router and shape it so that it wraps around the metal railing on three sides and then use something like liquid nails compound and glue the two together.