My career as a stair builder got its start thanks in large part to Hurricane Andrew, which prompted stricter structural requirements in the Florida Building Code that in turn led to wider acceptance of two-story homes. These homes needed stairs, of course, and I followed the book as I learned how to build them. But it seemed to me that most handrail tasks - determining rail height, laying out balusters, and cutting easings with a pitch block - required three hands; since I usually work alone and have only two, I began improvising ways to make my life easier and...