www.ultimatehandyman.co.uk

Hi guys, I have fitted 2"×1" oak wood spindles (not in the usual fashion) as my stair banister. The longest one is 1.75 metres and therefore has a fair amount of flex and would break if someone fell into it. I plan to reinforce these with metal to the rear in a stainless steel type finish.

My question is which metal and structure would be best for this given it can be larger than 2"×1" and will be 1.75m long on the longest strip.

I though either flat bar, round bar, tube or box?

I was swaying towards 15mm round bar or 1.5" flat bar 4mm thick.
What the difference between 304 and 306 etc

Cheers

A box section or tube will be more ridgid than a solid bar, to a point.

The box can be got easily in a pre polished/grained finish, where as flat isnt as commonly supplied polished.

Grade wise, the two most available grades are 316 and 304. In short, 316 is more corrosion resistant, so is used in marine/hygenic environments. Boat parts, food processing machinery. 304 is a slightly lesser resistant grade, so is slightly cheaper. Often used for decorative internal (or external if not close to the sea) items, like glass clamps, handrails etc.