Nice. What type of finish do you plan to use?

please use some wax or oil first and see what happens- don't stain-

Hi Brownstoner,

My wife and I are doing the same thing (Lefferts Place couple). The bannister is stripped and ready to be refinished. At the suggestion of a neighbor, we are using a traditional English woodwork/antique wax treatment (Briwax to be exact) to finish the bannister (see www.briwax-online.com). My neighbor's bannister looks great. We are going to use the darkest wax (dark brown). We are sealing the bannister first with the Briwax celluose sanding sealer - apparently it helps produce a deeper shine. The advantage of the wax is really in the patina that forms over time and the deep lustre that you don't necessarily get with polyurethane and stain. We'll let you know how it turns out.

Wax can be great. Also, tung oil -- which is somewhat easier to maintain. We used a high quality tung oil on our inner front door: it's UV resistant, has a lovely soft sheen (more coats = more sheen), a nice dry finish, and shows off the grain of the wood beautifully.

yes it was the dark briwax my husband used as well- it's the way to go you'll be sorry otherwise

I used a high-quality tung oil on my spindles and bannister and it looks beautiful and perfectly consistent with the age of my home (1839).

Tung oil is used throughout my house on the window moldings, and it's excellent for subtle sheen and no buildup of poly or other sealer.

I'm cleaning up my exterior wood door frame, and thinking about wax now . . .