That is a wood railing, wood newel, with some kind of metal balusters set into a frame. Stairs are not a DIY project. You need a very very good carpenter who can integrate custom metalwork into a design. If there is any modification to the stair itself, consult an architect or engineer. Good luck.

Thanks for the feedback, but maybe you and I have different skill levels. I just finished a previously unfinished basement by myself last year. I maybe should've mentioned that I'm a fairly skilled aircraft tech and have rebuilt three car engines.

I'm not building stairs from scratch. I'm installing a new banister for the catwalk in our home. I feel this is fully within my capability. Was just looking for some creative solutions for the iron portion of this project.

Check for metal shops in your area. We had a small metalbox we made out of metal sheet and wanted to weld together. We found a small shop that did it for us. It was about the same price as the store bought but the store bought boxes wouldn’t fit our project.

" If there is any modification to the stair itself, consult an architect or engineer."

This is just awful advice. Architects and engineers can draw anything on paper and still get paid. When inspection slaps a red tag on a stairway, it's the stair builder that's not getting paid.

The stair builder is not going to not get paid. He knows what will fly and what won't. Call someone who knows what's going on and has done it in real life please.

Fair enough. Call a stair builder. I’ve seen plenty of well-meaning , enthusiastic home fixer-uppers mangle a stair to a point where it is unsalvageable. My point is: call someone qualified. Joseph may not trust professionals, but some of us do. Personally, I’d start with someone who knows the code and can refer you to a proper stair builder. Most people don’t even know they exist. Good luck.