Q-I’m in the midst of renovating my first old house. The staircase leading to the second floor has an oak handrail with spindles and a curlicue thing on top of the post at the bottom of the stairs.

To tighten up handrails with spindles, apply a metal corner bracket to reinforce the structure from below. For even more stability, apply wood glue to the handrail's end edge (flush with the wall ...

I am finishing up in my central hallway. I replaced steps and risers, replaced missing spindles, stripped the mahogony handrail, etc. Now I am trying to figure out how to finish the handrail. My ...