Types of Hammered Iron Balusters: Tuscan Square, Tuscan Round and Gothic

Hammered balusters are iron bars with a textured, forged surface instead of a smooth one. We carry three hammered styles: Tuscan Square and Tuscan Round, which are hand hammered so every bar is a little different, and Gothic, which is machine hammered so every bar matches. All three are 9/16″ bars. Here is how they differ, what they cost and what to know before you drill.

By Douglas Lovin, owner of Cheap Stair Parts, 20+ years in stair parts · Updated 10/22/26

The three hammered styles at a glance

Style	Shape and size	How it is hammered	Look	Price range (baluster)
Tuscan Square Hammered	9/16″ square	By hand, varies bar to bar	Rustic, old-world	About $11 to $29
Tuscan Round Hammered	9/16″ round	By hand, varies bar to bar	Rustic, softer profile	About $11 to $43
Gothic Hammered	9/16″ square	By machine, even stamps on the face	Uniform, repeating texture	About $8 to $25

Prices are per baluster and change with the design. Plain bars sit at the low end; spheres, scrolls and tapered bars cost more.

Tuscan Square Hammered

Tuscan Square bars are hammered by hand. The nominal size is 9/16″ square, but because each bar is worked by hand, some spots can run as wide as 5/8″ or as narrow as 1/2″. No two bars look exactly alike, which is the point of this style.

Designs include plain bars, single and double knuckles, ovals, diamonds, spheres and spiral scrolls, so you can mix plain and decorative bars on the same stair. Oil Rubbed Bronze is a popular finish here because it plays up the hand-forged texture.

Shop Tuscan Square Hammered balusters.

Tuscan Round Hammered

Tuscan Round is the same hand-hammered idea on a 9/16″ round bar. The round profile reads softer than the square, and the texture still varies from bar to bar.

Designs include knuckles, spheres, sphere scrolls and tapered bars. Oil Rubbed Bronze is the most common finish on this style too.

Shop Tuscan Round Hammered balusters.

Gothic Hammered

Gothic bars are 9/16″ square with evenly spaced hammer stamps on the face of the bar. They are machine made, so the texture repeats the same way on every bar. Pick Gothic if you want texture without the bar-to-bar variation of a hand-hammered style.

Oil Rubbed Copper is a popular finish on Gothic. It is also the most budget-friendly hammered style we carry.

Shop Gothic Hammered balusters.

What about Santa Fe hammered?

Santa Fe, a machine-hammered 9/16″ square bar with hammering on the corners, has been discontinued. If you are matching an existing Santa Fe stair, Gothic is the closest machine-hammered option we carry, though it is not an exact match.

Hand hammered vs. machine hammered: which to pick

• Choose hand hammered (Tuscan) if you want an artisan, one-of-a-kind look and you are fine with small size and texture differences between bars.
• Choose machine hammered (Gothic) if you want every bar to match, or you are adding bars to an existing Gothic stair.
• Do not mix styles on one run. Tuscan and Gothic textures look different side by side. Pick one per staircase.

Before you drill: hole sizes for hammered bars

Use the same bits as any 9/16″ baluster:

Baluster	Drill bit
9/16″ square (Tuscan Square, Gothic)	7/8″
9/16″ round (Tuscan Round)	11/16″

Because hand-hammered Tuscan bars can run up to 5/8″ in spots, measure the widest point of your bars where they enter the handrail and tread before drilling. If a bar is close to 5/8″ square, a 1″ bit gives it room. See the baluster hole size guide and how to drill holes.

Shoes, finish and spacing

• Hammered bars take base shoes sized to the bar. Match a square shoe to Tuscan Square or Gothic and a round shoe to Tuscan Round. See base shoes for iron balusters.
• Plan on 3 balusters per tread on most stairs. Check the baluster measuring and spacing diagram.
• Our iron balusters are indoor only. They are not galvanized. For outdoor rails, see which railing is best for outdoor.
• Not sure about finish? Satin Black is the best seller, and Oil Rubbed Bronze or Copper suits hammered texture. See what color is best for wrought iron railings.