# Trim for curved staircase



## resilientdiyer (Feb 20, 2020)

I am having trouble finding a good solution to hide the ends of the treads that have been cut curved by my woodworker to match a curved staircase that previously had carpet. Please see pictures and advise...

What trim should I use for an exact curve or to fit snugly, or is there another method I can use to hide the ends and smoothly integrate into wall? As you can see the previous trim was for carpet and connected to something else.


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## Pretender (Jun 22, 2019)

In my opinion,
The best solution would be to take those up and replace with a tread that over hangs with a matching bull nose.


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## resilientdiyer (Feb 20, 2020)

Is this the solution? Flex molding? 

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Flex-Tr...ne-Flexible-Base-Cap-Moulding-90158/202961536


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## resilientdiyer (Feb 20, 2020)

Pretender said:


> In my opinion,
> The best solution would be to take those up and replace with a tread that over hangs with a matching bull nose.


Rendering all the existing treads useless? I don't have the budget for that, would curved molding be a better option?


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## Pretender (Jun 22, 2019)

Costly I know.
Are you putting a railing up?


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## John Smith_inFL (Jul 4, 2018)

DIYer - google: "wood stair tread end caps" and see if you can find
something that is within your skill set and tools available.
I am thinking that to do it right, the treads must be removed and 
the ends cut square and put them back to accept the end cap.
you can make up for the cut on the inside of the step against the wall.

second thought: are the treads reversible ?
remove the treads, flip them over, and put the curved end against the
wall - a small piece of molding would cover the defect.
(just thinking outside of the box here).

or - am I missing something here? that the ends "must be" curved ?

.


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## resilientdiyer (Feb 20, 2020)

Pretender said:


> Costly I know.
> Are you putting a railing up?


Yes... there will be wrought iron balusters going up and the old handrail on top of that (sanded and stained).


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## resilientdiyer (Feb 20, 2020)

John Smith_inFL said:


> DIYer - google: "wood stair tread end caps" and see if you can find
> something that is within your skill set and tools available.
> I am thinking that to do it right, the treads must be removed and
> the ends cut square and put them back to accept the end cap.
> ...


Undoable because each stair has a different curvature so they were custom cut to fit, and in many cases 2 treads were joined. plus one end has a different length than the other for all of them except base.


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## Pretender (Jun 22, 2019)

I'm sorry.
Other than my original suggestion I have nothing.
Best of luck to you.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Is the curve consistent?*



resilientdiyer said:


> Rendering all the existing treads useless? I don't have the budget for that, would curved molding be a better option?



If the curve is pretty consistent on all the ends, you can make a template. You can kerf the back of the molding so it will fit that mild curve. That's what I would do and fill the kerfs with Bondo and then sand and paint. The kerfed molding should be laid and clamped against your template so the curve is duplicated on the molding when the Bondo sets up. 



Check out these videos on how to use kerfing to bend wood:
https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=kerfing+to+bend+wood


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## BigJim (Sep 2, 2008)

Hopefully the treads can be taken back up. The only thing I can think of is remove the treads and use the curved end to trace the curve on a return that is shaped to match that tread. It will be time consuming but this method will look like it is actually should. As for hiding the end of the riser buy some stair brackets like in the photo and install. Run your scotia mold under the tread and wrap it under the return of the tread, put a return on the end of the scotia mold to complete.


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## Terry Q (Jul 28, 2016)

I think I would try to come up with a plan to cover the ends of the stair treads with what looks like a solid board. I’d either use layers of 1/4 inch plywood that can be bent to follow the curve, or better yet, bendable 3/4 inch plywood. The tops and bottoms would require trim to cover the plys, but you could steam bend narrow strips of trim. I’d make the trim a little skinnier than the plywood so that there is a small reveal, that way the trim doesn’t have to blend seamlessly with the plywood and will look great.


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## fareastern (Sep 19, 2014)

A bit of a fiddly job but not that difficult if you have the ability to use a bandsaw,spokeshave and block plane.A bit more information about the thickness and the depth of the trim wouldn't go amiss along with some guidance as to the amount of variation in curvature.


The first thing to do is to make a pattern of the curve and to see how many of the steps it might be suitable for.This is where the information about thickness would be useful as a thin enough piece can be bent a bit from it's original shape,but if its more than about half an inch thick,things are a bit more challenging.Which means you have to cut several patterns and take note of where they fit.A sketch of the whole staircase with notes of where each shape has to go will be useful.


The depth of the trim tells you what thickness board you need to be working with and the wider it is,the less will be wasted as you can nest several pieces side by side and only the edge pieces become firewood.You need the pattern(s) you made to represent the shape that you need the trims to be and consequently they need to be marked to the correct width and cut to suit.Any minor ripples need to be cleaned of with a spokeshave as its less work to do it once with the pattern than multiple times for each trim piece.Somebody may advocate using a bobbin sander and I have such a thing myself-I wouldn't use it for the job as the curve is so different to any bobbin I have and ripples are likely.With good pattern(s) you can mark out the number of trim pieces you need and a few spare might be useful.Carefully bandsaw them to shape and then prepare for a few hours of cleaning up the sawmarks with the spokeshave.Don't trim the ends until they have been assigned to the treads they will be fixed to as there is likely to be some variation and if you use the sketch of the job to assign numbers or letters it will make things easier.If somebody comes along and suggests using a router table and your patterns,ask them how much tear out they would regard as acceptable because it will be pretty much inevitable with a C shaped piece.



If all the ends of the trims have a common amount of coverage beyond the riser you can mark where to cut and pencil the tread identity on the back face.Once the ends have been cut you can think about how to finish the edges-presumably a small radius or chamfer.For fixing the trims I would use counterbored screws and plug the holes.Then a coating of whichever finish you like the look of.


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## mmwood_1 (Oct 24, 2007)

"I am having trouble finding a good solution to hide the ends of the treads that have been cut curved by my woodworker to match a curved staircase that previously had carpet."


-What did your woodworker have in mind? Why isn't the woodworker who went this route finishing up the job? To me, it seems to be the result of lack of forethought, but perhaps there was a plan in mind?


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## Jared Sankovich (Sep 21, 2019)

Get a better woodworker..


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