One would think that making one's own brass stair rods would be far cheaper than purchasing them, but the least expensive 1/2 brass pipe I found was $5.85, and the least expensive brackets, $3.40 each (or $7 a pair), while the least expensive "sets" of finials, brackets, and pipe per stair were $10.80.

Now, of course, they do have groovy ones on eBay from England...