Nice job on the rails. One thing you did not mention, how long did it take to complete the rails?

Let us know when you find a cheap supply of ipe on craigslist.

I`m not fast, just did bit by bit on a retired person`s schedule. Cutting the 21 posts on the chopsaw and measuring and drilling the 273 holes in the posts on the drill press was the most time consuming. I never welded before so welding the flanges on top was a learning experience but rewarding once I got the hang of it. Making and running the cables was pretty quick, half a day or so. I used a cutoff wheel on the hand grinder to cut the cables. It gave a very smooth cut which made feeding the cables thru the holes easy. If I had to do it over, knowing what I know now, it would probably take three or four days.
I`m looking for used stuff on Craigslist that I can clean up. I`ve seen great bargains but you gotta be quick.

Good Job Phil.

Depending on where you are I have a stack of 1/6 ipe just waiting for you.

John Hyatt www.deckmastersllc.com

Good job Phil! Not bad for a first time cable swager.

I didn't mean to discourage you when you first asked about making your own cable system. I just wanted you to know how laborious it can be.

The rough industrial look works for your location, it seems like you live in a remote mountanious area.

If I could make one correction though, you saved 50% in material cost by switching from stainless steel to galvanized. $600 vs $1,200. The rest of the savings is in labor.

Very good Phil. Where are you located? I have some 2x4 ipe available at a very good price.

Dooer, I live in the Columbia River Gorge. email me at osh@mcn.org. Thanks

Aidan, the cost of the galvanized cable system was $142 versus $1200 for the stainless system. The $1200 didn`t include the posts.

Pics of the final railing. I found a pallet of damaged Massaranduba railing at a bargain price. I was able to work around the damaged parts so that none are visible. It has nice rounded edges and an inset on the bottom to hide the mounting flanges.

Here is a link that might be useful: Railing pics

Nice work!
Can you tell me where you purchased the posts you used? And any other vendors you'd recommend for the parts? Thanks!

Phil, that is really some nice work. If your still out there.

Just shows what a Man can do with skills and hard work.

Its good to see Ya dig in, figure out how to do it, make yourself a few bucks, and have that good feeling when you go on out there and have a beer.

You Done Good Ol Son. JonMon

Hi Phil
Can you tell me where you bought your posts? And for that matter any other useful vendors you found? Love the railing!
Thanks

I also am interested in where you purchased your posts, and also I was wondering what distance the posts were centered. I was thinking the wood cap rail might start sagging dependent on what distance you have on center for the posts.

Sorry, I emailed the last guy asking about suppliers directly. Should have put it in a post.The posts should be easily available at metal supply places. The hard part might be finding a place that can galvanize them if you`re not near an industrial area. A Google search would show any nearby. I can`t remember exactly where I bought the cable, hardware and swages but it was all from online vendors. It pays to search thoroughly since prices and shipping vary widely. I know I bought from several vendors. I'm such a cheapskate I`ll spend an hour searching to save a buck! The cable was from http://www.webriggingsupply.com/ but their hardware prices stunk. As for the distance between posts the max I have is 64" and that is no problem. I have 1" Massaranduba cap rail, a plastic product or softer wood might not be so stiff. Good luck.

Dumb question, perhaps.... but how did you get the tension on the cables?
We are looking to do the same sort of DIY system on our deck. It looks great!

"how did you get the tension on the cables? "

The nut on the eyebolt threads through the post.

This is so excellent. I'm glad the post got bumped up.
Kathy

Can you tell me the approximate size of your deck? I'm looking at building a deck that would be 10 x 12 and wondering how much material I would need. I appreciate anything you can tell me. Thanks!

If you are looking for a stainless steel alternative. Please check us out. Our company is proud of being in business for over 110 years,

www.jakob-usa.com

We sell a cable railing kit with 11 cables and cable cutter at a very reasonable price.

10' for $333.50

20' for $388.50

30' for $443.50

50' for $553.50

Check them out here: https://shop.jakob-usa.com/?product_cat=cable-railing

Use the coupon code "HOUZZ" and I will give you a 10% discount.

if you need special lengths or quantities just email us at info@jakob-usa.com

Mention you found us here in HOUZZ and we will honor the 10% discount.

Thanks for the excellent advice!!! I used this as a basis for my own railing.

I opted for aluminium posts because I wanted something more polished than galvanized, but cheaper than stainless. Powder coating would be a good option if you wanted color. I also went with stainless cable and used thimbles to get a more consistent loop termination. Was not exactly a budget build, but still much cheaper than the pre-built systems. This system is just shy of 100' including the stair railing

Posts(23) - $860 (tube, bottom plates, top plates w/ free welding)
Rigging - $700 (cable, sleeves, stops, eyebolts, thimbles, swager, shipping)
Total - $1560 (was quoted $9500 + tax for a pre-built stainless post system)
+
Ipe(100') - $660 (wood + finishing oil)
Grand Total - $2220

Posts were 3x3x0.25" tube with 6x6x0.375" bottom plates and 4x6x0.25" top plates. I purchased 1500' of cable ($426), 100 sleeves ($41), 100 stops ($9), 52 eyebolts ($127), 52 stainless thimbles ($20), 1 swager ($27) + shipping. Ipe was 5/4x6" decking, beautiful stuff. I found a local hardware store that even let me pick through there pile and select some straight boards for my railing.

Looking back, I could have went cheaper on the eye bolts, they are not the weak point by any means. Upgrading to stainless increased the price by at least $350, but I do prefer the look. Can't overlook the free welding either, I'm lucky enough to be good friends with several, which helped hugely in keeping costs down.

Looks beautiful! Where did you purchase your cable and rigging supplies?

I bought the cable and rigging from www.eriggingsupply.com

However, I can't give them much of an endorsement. I tried to add an item to my shipment minutes after hitting submit.... long story short, they told me yes it was added, it was not, didn't get it until 4 weeks later, they tried to make me pay for the shipping. But if you double check your order and don't have any trouble where you have to deal with a human they might be ok.

I priced checked and they were cheaper on almost everything I bought. Like I said, the eye bolts were over kill and I could have probably sourced something local for cheaper.

Some follow-up advice. My Ipe were dry and straight, but they are warping slightly in the elements. I would probably add metal tubing between posts under the railing, to prevent warping.

Thanks for the great post. Your instructions are easy to follow - had to read through multiple posts to figure it all out. I think this might even work with wood posts

Wood will work, but there is significant strain on the corner posts. Mine are bolted down to the concrete deck, so metal was necessary to get the strength needed. Wood would work if you bolted to the rim joist.

illnate, where did you buy your aluminum posts and bottom and top mounting plates that were welded? Did the posts come pre-drilled and raw aluminum?

vtservice, I found local to be my best source for metal. Phone around to your local metal suppliers. Some will even do the cutting for you for free or as an added cost, so make sure to ask about that. The top and bottom plates were cut from 6" plate stock; we did the final grinding and pre-drilling ourselves. It took a full day of welding from a very good friend of mine. I paid for this in return work and beer.

illnate, would you mind posting a photo of your corner post? I'm curious how you turned the corner and if you're still seeing good results after a year+. Thanks!!

Hi Philodog! I love your helpful info about the deck rail system. I have wanted that for years and am shocked by pricing! I couldn't find your pictures to get an idea. Can you send them? I'm not very envisioning. :0(

Hi James, sorry missed your comment. Still good after almost 2 years. I didn't really "turn the corner". My cable runs are all separate (each run starts with a stop and ends with an eye bolt). My corners are 2 posts welded to a large bottom plate. I'll post a pic when i get a chance. If I did it again: supported top rail (wood is now wavy, but only noticeable when eyeing down the rail), lighter duty eye bolts, and I need a support tube at the top of my corner posts (as is, I only tensionned my cables to a few pounds, to get them tighter I need to add a tube between the posts).

@philodog Any chance you could post the pictures again and how is it holding up?

Holding up good here.