Bullnose stair treads - OK to bullnose the solid ends?

[Sam Murdoch]

I prefer NOT to add a bullnose to the outside of my open treads. Would rather run the bullnose solid through the end grain to avoid the potential of breaking off mitered bullnose ends.

Question 1 - Is the CREEK consensus that on stain grain work the solid end grain bullnose is crappy looking?

Question 2 - If YES to # 1 don't you think the solid aspect overrides the look aspect of an attached /mitered bullnose return?

Thanks for opining .

Sam

[Jeff Ramsey]

1. End grain will certainly absorb stain at a different rate than flat grain. If you apply enough coats of stain you may get it close. But that wouldn't be my approach.
2. With a miter sled on a table saw, you can repeatedly cut perfect miters. I've even used a different species of wood for the bull nosing, and it looks great. I also use splines to attach the mitered nosing to the tread; tight splines make alignment a breeze.

So my vote is the mitered nosing.

[Mel Fulks]

We used to glue them and use a couple of big finish nails. That was not my decision ,but it worked well. The return also added length to the tread, but I'm guessing you have some different arrangement in mind. Now that the balusters are not often dovetailed in ,we can be more creative. My big preference for stairs and floors is dark color.

[Sam Murdoch]

I'm not worried about the finishing - I can handle that. This will not be a formal set of stairs but rather a simple painted riser with clear coated tread with mitered skirts to risers on the open landing area in a modest Cape style house. I don't mind doing the miters BUT I'm of the mind that the incorporated bullnose will look good forever as you will never have open miters with the change of seasons here in the mid-coast of Maine.

[Cary Falk]

I prefer to have the end grain on the edge of bullnose stairs. It shows me that it is solid wood. Sand the end grain with the next higher grit and it will stain the same color.

[Jerry Miner]

Sam-- you obviously will not get a consensus here (did you really expect that??).

My .02: There is no harm in letting the end grain show. Less "formal" than mitered returns, but so what? Follow your own instincts.

[glenn bradley]

I do a lot of things with purposely exposed end grain. I sand a couple of grits higher and seal the end grain prior to finishing the rest of the piece. I don't use a lot of colorants so if using a dye or a stain you would have to experiment a bit to get a match.

GnG Low CoD (290).jpgCoD-Finished-10.jpgGnG Wall Cab (176).jpg

[Don Jarvie]

I think Glenn’s idea of sanding a few grits higher is a good one. I would try a prototype and see how it looks.

[Wayne Lomman]

Show the end grain. I'm at a loss as to why end grain is viewed as being undesirable. Adding a mitre and crossing the grain is a waste of time and effort and as already noted, structurally unsound. Makes as much sense as breadboard ends... Cheers

[Sam Murdoch]

Hey , I think we are getting a consensus here

Thanks everyone for chiming in...

[Bradley Gray]

For me, adding a nosing is about dovetailing the balusters. If not installing spindles I would leave it solid.stair nose.jpg