Bannister Railing Wood ID

[Dave huber]

Greetings.



I am trying to determine what species wood this is.



Unfortunately, it is finished.



It is in a house built in Illinois in approximately the 1930s



I'll need to turn a little button to cover the bolt hole. the original went missing.



Does anyone know the likely answer?



Thanks for your help.



Dave

[Jamie Buxton]

Looks like walnut to me.

[Tom M King]

Is that the natural wood color down inside the hole around the nut?

[Dave huber]

I can't tell if that is the wood color or some kind of adhesive. I'm trying to get some info about what the stain is, so maybe that can help. I have not seen it in person. I will try to get some additional info or better pix.

[Mel Fulks]

I think a pic of a straight section would be better. Lot of scratches and short grain are making an easy call more difficult.

[peter gagliardi]

Looks like stained Birch, and would be my bet. Done a lot of Birch jobs over the years.

[mreza Salav]

That's a light colored wood such as Maple or Birch, stained. If you are only making a cover for the hole the species is not as important as getting a stain to match, IMO.

[Dave huber]

Thanks!

I have some poplar, birch and beech available. All seem to be contenders. I’ll give a couple of different pieces a whirl and see if we can get it stained close enough to look acceptable.

Thank you all for your assistance!!

Dave

[Bill Carey]

After you get the color right you might want to kick around the yard a bit .Aging it will be harder than staining it. Maybe look in some salvage shops for something old that matches.

[Andrew Seemann]

It is also possible that the original button wasn't even the same species, just stained the same color. Mixing species and staining to match wasn't (and isn't) uncommon in houses. For a button like that, something that turns cleanly would have been more important than the species if stained. It also was probably from a catalog or what the millwork store/shop had on hand, and not likely custom turned to match.

[Richard Wolf]

I would also go with birch or beech, they were popular woods used in balustrades that was easy to stain to make look like other woods. They also held details well and turned and sanded well.

[Earl McLain]

I just picked up some acrylic cabachons (spelling?) from a yo-yo maker a few weeks back, diameters from 1" to 2", sort of random. That screw cover looks like a bit of a blank canvas for a bakelite/ebonite cover, perhaps embedded in the wooden plug. Tasteful, might be a feature that reduces the need to match the stain as closely. Just thinking.
earl
(edit--my intent on my purchase was to try embedding some in bottle stoppers, haven't gotten to that yet)

[Charles Lent]

Most factory made railing parts are Beech, so without looking at an unstained piece my bet is on Beech. In a good lumber yard you can buy standard design railings, turns, drops, spindles, etc. and trim them to fit most railing needs. Very few railings are completely custom made, just custom fitted.

Charley

[Richard Wolf]

First, that style volute is no longer available as a standard item. The fact that the cap flows into the rail section has to be hand carved. It's a shame that the builder bolted the volute to the post with an invasive hole through the top. That is a low stress joint which is normally glued and maybe a nail or screw through the top which can easily be hidden. The hole looks like a 1" hole which plugs are readily available. Your problem maybe getting it flush without damage to the surrounding areas. Then staining and including patina to match what you have. I think that the bolted down volute may have also contributed to the broken joint on the volute, which I see is open. A pocket type screw in through the bottom may help that.