For most of his career,  John has been a “from the foundation up” type of contractor.  Framing, exterior finish, interiors, even some cabinetry —he hammered nearly every nail on every home that he put his name on.

But Dash Landing has been a different type of project.  Between a bum shoulder and a desire to “mix things up,” John has been more of a traditional contractor / work coordinator on our house.  On one hand, that’s allowed us to meet fantastic crews like KC and the Framers.  Ditto with our interior carpenters Tom and Dick.  We can’t imagine what the last few months would have been like without them.

On the other hand, all of us — John included — hoped that he’d be able to contribute to Dash Landing’s finish work.  And towards that end, he set aside the stairs as where he wanted to leave his mark.  Most builders believe that a staircase is a home’s centerpiece — critical to the home’s aesthetic and maybe the single most challenging element to build.

So for the last couple of Saturdays (“Too damn many people in here the rest of the week.“), John has been building our stairs.  Slowly, methodically and according to the following rules :

• No joints bigger than the thickness of a baseball card.  And no cheating with caulk.
• Nails, glue, screws and plugs.
• Stone silent.   No clicks.  No squeaks.  Absolutely no sound.   (Although a client once asked him to put back a squeak in order to hear their kids coming down the stairs.)

Not quite done yet, but they’re looking incredible.

John working on treads.

Getting close. There’s a base coat of poly on the treads just to save wear & tear. It’ll be sanded off and retreated when the floors are finished.

Early in the process.

No gaps or joints that a baseball card would fit into….