Wood Work on Balustrade Stairs case

[Jeremy2014]

Hello Expert!
We are looking to remove the side panel from the staircase so bring back the real bannister. Mindful that the main guardrail might need some touch-up as there is some white paint there and again. What would be the recommendations? as if we start sanding it, we might need to sand the whole of it so to it is uniform? or should it just be varnished?

 

[foxhole]

Emulsion is easy to scrub off , you can then refinish . I would be more concerned about what may or may not be behind boarding .

 

[opps]

Meths will soften the emulsion, unfortunately, if the handrail is french polished (doesn't look like it is), the meths will soften the polish, equally if it is waterbased varnish, it will soften the varnish.

As per @foxhole 's post, emulsion should be pretty easy to remove. I would start by wetting it and then use my fingernail to scrape it off or use a green webrax pad (scouring pad).

 

[Jeremy2014]

Thanks so much for the information shared. We started to look at a couple of places shared, and so far so good - but yes, mindful, we could discover something we do not like. What do you think we could be surprised by?

By the way, re-refinish, do you mean just applying a new layer of varnish? or removing the old one and applying some new one?

 

[Tigercubrider]

That looks likely to have the original spindles inside but you never know.
The white paint shown looks easy to remove and is pretty inconspicuous so just treat it carefully and you may not need to do any refinishing. Avoid “like new” finishes as it has patina.

Cutting a hole in a discrete place may help see what’s behind the panel. Tap it and you may get a hollow sound that changes where there is a spindle. You can buy cheap endoscopes that Wi-Fi to phones or iPads.
Even a dental mirror

 

[Jeremy2014]

Cool cool thanks so much for all that info. Really appreciate it. and I guess, once we start painting that wood work we would need to use a primer / undercoat first followed by a normal coat of paint?