Chair Rail Return Help

[brnhornt]

Hey gang,

Quick question to see if anyone else has dealt with this before.  My brother is installing new chair rail along his stairs.  All of the existing chair rail in the house is cut short and returned wherever it comes across a door or window....so he wants to match that.  In addition....there is an existing light switch in the way anyway...so no matter what, he's forced to stop and return.  The problem is how to form/cut that return.  Here's a snap of the rail's profile:

   

So the rail will match the slope of the stairs....and if he were to cut the return 90 degrees to the rail itself....no problem....but that will leave the end of the rail at 45 degrees and looking rather odd (but it's square to itself and easy to cut.)  The question is....is there a way to cut and return the rail so that the end will be 90 degrees, straight up and down, and therefore better to the eye?  I can't think of anything that doesn't end up messing with the profile shape and looking janky.

Kind of hard to describe what I mean....so here's a couple of pics if it helps.

Easy cut and return....but leaves the end at 45 degrees on the wall and odd:

   

Harder cut that we can't figure out, but the end ends up 90 degrees and matches the door:

   

Thanks!
Kevin

[Turner52]

Can be cut on any compound mitre saw. As to how the profile will look, cut a test piece and see. If you don't have axcess to a compound mitre saw it can be cut on a table saw but the mitre saw would be easier. Tip the saw to a 45 and adjust the angle to whatever you need. Been a LONG time but I think around 32 degrees to start. Just see if that matches the stair angle.

[crokett™]

I don't think it would look odd if it were simply returned to itself. every stair railing I've ever seen is done that way and not the way that you are proposing. The railing for the stairs just outside my office door is returned to itself about 2" in front of the door at the top of the stairs. it doesn't look the least bit odd. What you are proposing is both more complicated and (IMO) looks odd.

[Roly]

I don't think it would look odd if it were simply returned to itself.  every stair railing I've ever seen is done that way and not the way that you are proposing.  The railing for the stairs just outside my office door is returned to itself about 2" in front of the door at the top of the stairs.  it doesn't look the least bit odd.  What you are proposing is both more complicated and (IMO) looks odd.

I was think hand rail also, is this for chair rail or hand rail ?   Roly

[crokett™]

I was think hand rail also, is this for chair rail or hand rail ?   Roly

Whether it's hand rail or chair rail, the way he wants to do it looks odd and is overly complicated. IMO.    Anybody who sees it their brain will think handrail, because it's running up the stairs, and then it will look odd because by code handrails have to be returned to the wall, and they're alway just returned to themselves.

[DaveR1]

Typically when a molding has to run at an angle it would be terminated horizontally something like this.

[Roly]

Typically when a molding has to run at an angle it would be terminated horizontally something like this.

Looks good, I like that method.   Roly

[brnhornt]

It's chair rail....but I like that idea...never thought of it.

[DaveR1]

It's chair rail....but I like that idea...never thought of it.

It doesn't really matter so much what it is. A base molding, hand rail, wainscot molding, they would all traditionally get a similar sort of treatment. Actually a base molding would get a couple of additional miters to get up over the first step.

[brnhornt]

Thanks again!!!

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