Advice sought - Hand rail attaching

[Ian down london way]

I've been asked to help a friend creating some matching handrails for a house extension. The large end posts are in place, created by the builders, but I'm not sure how best to attach the handrails.

Any suggestions?

cheers.

 

[Adam9453]

Some more info would be useful.
What are the posts made from?
What are the hand rails made from?
Do you have pictures?

 

[Ian down london way]

The end posts are 100mm square softwood (I think).


Below is a picture of the softwood hand rail shaped to be like their others. They are 75mm across the thickest part.

I am having to install the handrail along the slant (~45 deg)

[attachment=0]IMG_2815.JPG[/attachment]

 

[Shultzy]

Google is your friend "attaching hand-rails to newel posts" shows videos and the connectors you need.

 

[DTR]

I was in a similar quandary recently....

how-to-fit-handrail-into-newel-posts-t97342.html

I ended up tenoning both ends into the newels. It was a little bit awkward because one end had to be angled in on the skew, but it worked. I pegged the tenons to ensure that the joints would remain tight

 

[Armagh]

At work we commonly router the handrail 5mm into the newel post at top and bottom. Then screw through the underside of the handrail at the bottom, screw through the back of the newel at the top, and cover the visible screw hole at the top by plugging it. Be careful to make sure your newel posts are both plumb.

 

[Ian down london way]

Thanks guys - much appreciated. I've looked at a host of videos now, all very interesting (well, most).

I was wondering about the different ways of putting something poking out of each end of the hand rail which then enters into the post (from dowels to tennons to expensive swively bits of metal). However, with the posts looking to be well and truly fitted, and I'm rather reluctant to try to unfit them, the basic problem of how you put in a handrail between two fixed posts is that if both ends have a pokey-outy-bit, of any form, I won't be able to position the handrail between the posts.

I think I will use a "screw it in form the far side of the post" - strategy, but put a cross dowel into the hand rail to give the screw something other than end-grain to grip.

Insane?