First Place Northeast Region
Michael Shenton
Salisbury, Maryland

Making Steps with a Wood-Mizer

The graceful sweep of the spiral staircase in Michael and Kim Shendon's timber frame house was made possible by Michael's Wood-Mizer LT30 sawmill. The Shendons live in Salisbury, Maryland.

"I cut the treads from sassafras to the riser height on my LT30 and sawed them into 36-inch pieces," Michael says. He continues that he cut all the wood for the stair railing and loft railings on his Wood-Mizer, saving about $8,000. He bolted and stacked the treads in a spiral with posts about every four treads. The stair railing is laminated together around a form he set up on the treads, and the loft railings are timber framed.

The Shendons worked as a team- Michael cutting and building, and Kim sanding and oiling the stairs and railings.

Michael is enthusiastic about the project, "We love the way the stairs and railings turned out. The grain in sassafras just jumps out when it's oiled."