I can see something like the below working very well for your stairs. It would involve refinishing the treads, so not sure if you're up for that, but it sure is classy looking.

Thanks redsilver and Manon! And, yes, redsilver...it IS a lot of posts...they continue around the second floor. I believe there are something like 60 in all. Uggh. I have considered removing/replacing the posts/spindles, but honestly I don't even know where'd I'd begin with that. It would involve removing the banister and that likely hasn't been done in a VERY long time. Is that even a DIY type of job? Your comment about "refreshing the wood"...are you speaking of the banister? Yes, it is stained. It does need a good wood polish! I

I wondered if you could use a hacksaw to likely cut the nails at the bottom and top of each post? OR maybe you would just saw each post in half and than be able to remove 2 posts, and replace 2 posts at a time? Thinking that the new posts would be primed and painted before putting them into place. It would be a large task, but man put it there, so there must be a way to remove it, without removing the banister handrail? Youtube probably has a video with tips. But by than, you could have brushes and sanded 2 posts, so IDK. It's a big job either way!

It's going to feel like it takes you forever to paint them all by hand, but it definitely can be done. It's taken me about 6 hours over the last 4 weeks to sand, caulk, prime and paint 24 balusters and 16 risers. The worst part was masking and sanding. Once that was done I got into a rhythm and the painting went pretty quickly.

Michael, are you even sure those are the original wood parts to the stairs? I'm thinking they look a lot more recent and have been replaced in the last 50 years or so.

If you want to redo the bannister in a darker tone, give a good sanding by hand to take down some of the current color. (or you could completely strip the whole thing if you'd rather). use a java or similar dark stain in a gel and give it a coat. when dry, get a wipe on poly like General Finishes Arm r Seal. You can do the same thing w/the treads.

OR:, you can remove those spindles and replace them with a more squared off version, like these

You could always paint the bannister in a black, and do the spindles and risers as well

or, just paint the or stain the bannister in a dark color, do the treads, and leave everything else white.

go to HomeDepot or Lowes (if you want to DIY) and change out your spindles to the wrought iron ones. You can also call a stair guy for this. to replace all your spindles and put on a new bannister, would prob be in the 2k range or so.

you could also replace the newel posts and install a runner

Great idea: Destroy unique balusters that are almost 200 years old and replace them with off-the-shelf mass-produced garbage that has nothing to do with the style of the house. Just to save one paint job.

Jeebuz.

Even if they aren't original, they certainly fit better than anything from a big box store--including those god-awful McMansion metal ones from some Chinese sweatshop.

This isn't some HGTV hack show, and a house that old deserves to be treated better.

Omg -not only destroy unique original balusters and replace w/ugly mass produced crap - but spend a lot of $$$$$ doing it. Makes no sense. Hint: wood working with that degree of precision, detail and heftiness (is that a word) is almost certainly vintage.

Modern interior design can be done in a historic house in a way that meshes with and works synergistically with original features - no need to destroy them!

Update: This morphed into more than just "painting the spindles", so bear with me. I'm in the homestretch...at least for my part of the project! Ok, here's the deal. I started with the floors in the entry hall and study. I stripped those using the "Silent Paint Remover"...an infrared heat gun that I've used on other projects and it's AMAZING. The entry hall was relatively straightforward. There were 5 layers of paint, which came up pretty easily, and the wood is tight and in good shape. It's an old floor but not original. Then I proceeded to the study...totally different floor. I'm not sure if it's "original" but from everything I can see and determine, I'd be willing to bet it is...or at least "very early". It's a lower grade of wood with a good deal of gaping, cupping, wear and staining. In addition to at least 5 layers of paint, there was also evidence of stain and varnish (or similar). This floor did not clean up as well....which was expected.

While I waited for the pros to come in and sand down the floors, I got to work on the staircase spindles. Julie (above), thank you for the inspiration to do this myself. My goal was to complete the 30 spindles going to the top of the staircase before floor guys arrived and coated everything down there in dust. I sanded each spindle, primed them all, and gave them each 2 coats of Sherwin Williams Crisp Linen. That process, I have to say, was a real exercise in patience, detail, and restraint. It was intimidating as hell for me, but I have to say that I'm glad I did it. Now, I just have to tackle the other 30 on the 2nd floor landing. LOL After that, I'm having pros come in to do the treads, risers and baseboards. I do know my limits.

Floor guys came in and sanded the floors, with the intent of either staining/poly or just poly to keep the light, natural look. However, after doing a great job sanding, they were real hesitant about doing anything but a very dark stain in the study. The floor is in "rough" shape and I don't think they wanted to be held responsible for me not being happy, which I totally get. So, they were done and I had floors that were/are bare wood. I decided to keep it natural and applied Waterlox in the study. I'm two coats in, on my way to 4. I've done nothing in the entry hall; that'll wait until after the first of the year.

I will post pictures in a bit...

Re: where your refinishers are come from - they are probably used to X no. of customers wanting an old floor that looks brand spanking new. Another school of thought is just to let your old wood be old! Cleaned and brightened and finished -but with wear and patina.