Replies

1. 
   Ragnar17 | Feb 11, 2007 09:08am | #1

   I've used Brazilian Cherry (Jotoba) for stair treads and I am very pleased with the results.

   I don't know about how that species compares with what you might be using, but perhaps you could find some technical data on the internet to compare the two in terms of hardness value.

2. 
   woodroe | Feb 11, 2007 09:13am | #2

   Suggestions and recommendations for what. Suitability, sizing, fastening, finishing, or fitting?

1. 
   DaveTous | Feb 11, 2007 05:30pm | #3

   All of the above would be great if you have the time. This is going to be my first stair job.

   Let me rephrase this I've built stair but most of these where exrterior. I have a few books

   Thanks

   Dave 

3. 
   robert | Feb 11, 2007 05:44pm | #4

    Cherry is fine, but maybe not as hard as some other woods.  I've used it myself and put rails on several cherry stairs.

    Something to consider is the rail and all the other things that go with a stair. Cherry might make a great tread, but the price of a matching railing system may make it unrealistic.

    Some places stock cherry rail parts some don't. It's worth looking into.

    The finish also plays into the durability so it may be worth considering what finish you'll use before making a firm decision.

1. 
   TonyCz | Feb 11, 2007 06:50pm | #5

   Make up a sample tread and place a good finich on the material and put it down and walk on it for several days to see how the surface holds up. Cherry may be a bit too soft for treads?

   Just a thought before you plunk down the dough and the client becomes unhappy with the performance of a cherry treads.   

4. 
   DougU | Feb 11, 2007 06:57pm | #6

   Dave

   We just finished a house with mostly cherry woodwork.

   We used Jatoba(as someone else mentioned) for the treads and cherry for the handrail - all parts readily available.

   Cherry is to soft for treads IMO but if your going to put a runner over them then it would be OK.

   Doug

1. 
   Ragnar17 | Feb 14, 2007 11:01am | #10

   DougU,

   Thanks for the input regarding American cherry -- I didn't know it was so much softer than Jatoba.

5. 
   woodroe | Feb 12, 2007 02:46am | #7

   Cherry is on the soft end for treads, but should be fine. Use 4/5" material, glue your treads and risers with construction adhesive. The tropical woods that use the name cherry are in no way related to what we have always called cherry. They are all more dense, thus better suited for the sometimes heavy use (and abuse) a stair can take.

1. 
   wmoureau | Feb 15, 2007 12:29am | #15

   janka hardness rating am.cherry 950 oak 1290 bra cherry 2820

6. 
   MisterT | Feb 14, 2007 04:05am | #8

   Don't...

   too soft...

   American Black Cherry that is...

   Furrin terrorist cherry is harder...

   Welcome to Breaktime

   Home of

   The Aristocrats

1. 
   DaveTous | Feb 14, 2007 07:02am | #9

   Master T

   Don't what?

   Use America Black Cherry?

   How about the Brazilian Cherry?

1. 
   MisterT | Feb 14, 2007 03:26pm | #11

   if you are gonna use a brazillion ft of cherry you'd better replant some trees...

   Seriously brazilian is OK

   Ameerican Black cherry is too soft

   Janka Hardness Scale For Wood Flooring Species

   The Janka hardness test is a measurement of the force necessary to embed a .444-inch steel ball to half its diameter in wood. It is the industry standard for gauging the ability of various species to tolerate denting and normal wear, as well as being a good indication of the effort required to either nail or saw the particular wood.

   Please note that this is just a partial list containing some of the most popular choices in wood flooring as well as some of the more exotic species we carry.

   For a detailed description of a particular species, click on its name to view a wood flooring specification page on that type of wood.

   Wood Flooring Species

   Hardness

   Ipe / Brazilian Walnut /  Lapacho

   3684

   Cumaru / Brazilian Teak

   3540

   Ebony

   3220

   Brazilian Redwood / Paraju

   3190

   Angelim Pedra

   3040

   Bloodwood

   2900

   Red Mahogany, Turpentine

   2697

   Spotted Gum

   2473

   Brazilian Cherry  / Jatoba

   2350

   Mesquite

   2345

   Santos Mahogany, Bocote, Cabreuva

   2200

   Pradoo

   2170

   Brushbox

   2135

   Karri

   2030

   Sydney Blue Gum

   2023

   Bubinga

   1980

   Cameron

   1940

   Tallowwood

   1933

   Merbau

   1925

   Amendoim

   1912

   Jarrah

   1910

   Purpleheart

   1860

   Goncalo Alves / Tigerwood

   1850

   Hickory / Pecan, Satinwood

   1820

   Afzelia / Doussie

   1810

   Bangkirai

   1798

   Rosewood

   1780

   African Padauk

   1725

   Blackwood

   1720

   Merbau

   1712

   Kempas

   1710

   Locust

   1700

   Highland Beech

   1686

   Wenge, Red Pine

   1630

   Tualang

   1624

   Zebrawood

   1575

   True Pine, Timborana

   1570

   Peroba

   1557

   Kambala

   1540

   Sapele / Sapelli

   1510

   Curupixa

   1490

   Sweet Birch

   1470

   Hard Maple / Sugar Maple

   1450

   Coffee Bean

   1390

   Natural Bamboo (represents one species)

   1380

   Australian Cypress

   1375

   White Oak

   1360

   Tasmanian Oak

   1350

   Ribbon Gum

   1349

   Ash (White)

   1320

   American Beech

   1300

   Red Oak (Northern)

   1290

   Carribean Heart Pine

   1280

   Yellow Birch

   1260

   Movingui

   1230

   Heart Pine

   1225

   Carbonized Bamboo  (represents one species)

   1180

   Cocobolo

   1136

   Brazilian Eucalyptus / Rose Gum

   1125

   Makore

   1100

   Boreal

   1023

   Black Walnut

   1010

   Teak

   1000

   Sakura

   995

   Black Cherry, Imbuia

   950

   Boire

   940

   Paper Birch

   910

   Cedar

   900

   Southern Yellow Pine (Longleaf)

   870

   Lacewood,  Leopardwood

   840

   Parana

   780

   Sycamore

   770

   Shedua

   710

   Southern Yellow Pine (Loblolly and Shortleaf)

   690

   Douglas Fir

   660

   Larch

   590

   Chestnut

   540

   Hemlock

   500

   White Pine

   420

   Basswood

   410

   Eastern White Pine

   380Welcome to Breaktime

   Home of

   The Aristocrats

1. 
   StanFoster | Feb 14, 2007 03:31pm | #12

   Dave:   I compare cherry ...brazilian cherry to oak.

    

   If you put the hardness of oak at 100...

   American cherry is  60..

   Brazilian cherry is 120..

    

    

    

   Stan

1. 
   DaveTous | Feb 14, 2007 05:05pm | #13

   Thanks for all your help on this. Going to the big city this weekend to pick up some supplies for the house and take the wife out for a nice dinner.(Anchorage) You'll have to excuse my spilling here.

   I'm going to have more questions on this stairs project.

   Screwed up on the newel posts, rails and balusters, I bought clear hemlock. I think I could paint the balusters but not sure how to fix the post and rails. Should I just replace them? Is it going to look like junk with the cherry stairs?

   I have the post and rails in only around the top floor overlooking the stairs.

   Is $5.06 a sq. foot about right for this wood? I'm in Alaska.

   Dave

   Edited 2/14/2007 9:46 pm ET by DaveTous

   Edited 2/14/2007 11:30 pm ET by DaveTous

2. 
   Ragnar17 | Feb 14, 2007 08:02pm | #14

   Screwed up on the newel posts, rails and balusters, I bought clear hemlock. I think I could piant the balusters but not sure how to fix the post and rails. Should I just replace them? Is it going to look like junk with the cherry stairs?

   Dave,

   Of course this is an opinion thing, but I think your stairs would look fine with one species on the treads and/or risers and another species on the handrail, newel, balusters, etc.

   I predominantly use fir in my finish work (it's a regional thing with the age of houses that I work on).  The fir is typically stained a dark reddish/mahogany color; I think it goes quite well with the dark red in the Jatoba.  (I'm attaching a picture of Jatoba flooring next to some mahogany-stained fir to give you an idea of how it looks.)

   Hemlock and fir are not all that different.  I'd suggest you consider staining and topcoating some samples and see if you can come up with something you like.

   As others have mentioned, cherry stair components can be quite expensive, so depending on your budget constraints, using a softwood on the upper portions might not be a bad solution.

   I've also seen people use a dark paint on the newels/rails/balusters.  From a distance, it kind of appears like a dark stain and doesn't look bad.  However, I don't have any direct experience with it.

3. 
   DaveTous | Feb 15, 2007 07:07am | #16

   Thanks,

   I'm going to try some stain samples first.

   Is that price about right?

   $5.06 a sq. foot.

4. 
   DougU | Feb 15, 2007 07:33am | #17

   Dave

   $5.06 a sq. foot. Thats not a whole lot different then here in Iowa.

   You should be able to stain it to match the cherry unless your staying pretty light - or natural.

   Doug

5. 
   Ragnar17 | Feb 15, 2007 08:23am | #19

   Dave,

   Last time I bought Jatoba it was a bit under $4 psf; but that was several years ago.

   The treads I used were bullnosed and a full inch thick (not 3/4" like the common flooring).  The distributor from which I bought the treads priced them by the piece (not by the square foot), and I can't really remember what they cost.

6. 
   DaveTous | Feb 15, 2007 07:41am | #18

   Thanks Stan

   I've looked at some of your work on this forum,

   really, really, nice. Would you recommend using narrower boards, glued together, or do you use full width ones? 

   Dave