Boeing 747 Spiral Staircase - Expert Needed

[747Stairs]

Hi,



I have a rather unusual inquiry that I was hoping someone on the boards might be able to help me with.



I recently purchased a home that appears to have been owned and remodeled by an eccentric individual in the early 1970’s. Ownership of the house has changed hands several times since then, and now is in severe disrepair. I am early in the process of renovating it.



Among several unusual design elements is a set of spiral stairs that covers two stories of the house. I was at a community function a few weeks ago and got talking to a man who said he was familiar with my house. He was aware of the spiral staircase and told me that it was taken from a Boeing 747.



I did some research and learned that early model 747’s, like the 747-100, had a spiral staircase that connected the two-story front section of the aircraft. In later models, a straight staircase was used. I was able to find a picture or two, but they did not look like the stairs in my house.



However, I don’t discredit the man’s story for two reasons. 1. He knew about the staircase without my mentioning. 2. The staircase railings have a “Buck Rogers” look to them.



I’ve posted some pictures on the website below (sorry about the ads… it’s free space)

http://www.angelfire.com/film/vegemite/



I’m looking for two pieces of information:

1. A verification of whether or not the stairs are from an aircraft. If so, what model? Were they configured for a particular commercial carrier?



2. If so, where might I begin to find the railings (all of the railings are missing on the first flight of stairs.) I’m looking to buy them…. Was hoping they may be in a scrap yard or salvage spot.



Any tips, leads, or information would be appreciated! Feel free to post or to email me.



Thanks!

-Eddy

 

[Rolling-Thunder]

Did a quick search and found several references to the "Tiger-Lounge"

The staircase does look different. Here's a couple of pics.

 

[potrack]

The -100 and -200 models had the spiral staircase. The -300 and -400 models have straight staircases...typically.........I think.

Like you said, it may vary from company to company and interior configuration.

I checked out your pictures and would say those are not from a 747. The ones I have seen don't have those unusual hand rails.....they have a continuous railing all the way up.

 

[Rolling-Thunder]

If it were me, I would just call someone in Public Relations at Boeing Corp.

 

[747Stairs]

Rolling Thunder- Thanks for the pictures and advice. I just emailed the historian at Boeing. I'll post whatever information I find out.

Potrack- Yeah, all of the pictures I've seen also have the continuous railing. My thought was that maybe different airlines configured their interiors differently. It's hard to find pictures of these things though.

Thanks for the help so far. Please continue to post if you have other info!

 

[EagleRJ]

The castings that form the step ends and railings- are they aluminum or steel? That will probably be one good clue. What are the steps themselves made of?

If the stairs are indeed from a 747, they were probably built custom to the customer's specifications, so your staircase might be one of only a few made, or it might be a one-of-a-kind. Additional railings will be nearly impossible to find if that's the case!

Unless you have your heart set on keeping this staircase as you rennovate your house, a far easier option might be to tear it out and install one of the numerous modern spiral staircases. They're made in both wood and metal.

Good luck!

 

[Simon Says]

Eddy,

Looks like you got a cool house. I would love to have such an unusual staircase in my house, but I think my wife would divorce me if I ever made such a purchase. Keep us posted on your progress.