99 % of the cakes I make are fondant cakes. And although I've got it pretty much down now and the cakes end up very nice (most of the time), I'm looking to expand my catalogue with more buttercream cakes - both because they can be so pretty if done right, and also because I'm getting a bit tired of the whole make-your-own-fondant-roll-it-to-perfection-then-get-it-on-the-cake-without-it-tearing ordeal. I've fallen in love with IMBC, and I'm sure I could make some great looking buttercream finishes with just a bit more practice.

But I can't bake a cake every time I want to practice my buttercream skills, so using cake dummies would be perfect - and I have a whole bunch of different kinds. But how on earth can I make the dummies stick to the turntable well enough to be able to frost it to a perfect finish? If the dummy moves even a little bit, there ends up being a dent in the buttercream from the side scraper - the darned things weigh like nothing!

I've tried double sided tape, but either the tape is not strong enough so the dummy ends up moving anyway - or it's so strong you can't get the dummy off the turntable afterwards without totally wrecking your work! Do any of you guys mind sharing how you solve this problem, using dummies and buttercream? I read somewhere about  placing spikes in the turntable or something, to fasten the dummies with, but 1. wouldn't that ruin the turntable for ordinary use, and 2. wouldn't even that make it incredibly hard to remove the dummy after you're done, at least without damaging the buttercream?

Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you all in advance 

Hi Elisaber. You could try non slip mats under the dummy. The dummy still wiggles about, but doesn't move away from it's spot because of the mat, if you know what I mean.

You could try weighing down your dummy too by screwing the same size cake drum underneath. Alternatively a very thin layer of royal icing underneath to glue it to whatever surface you are using. Just thin enough so that when you come to stacking it doesn't make your dummy cake look uneven with the dried RI. 

AGet a cake drum, turn it upside down, bang a nail through the middle so it pokes thought the top, push your dummy onto the nail. No more shifting dummies :)

Thanks a lot for the tips, guys - I will definitely be trying them out :-)

But Siany01 - won't the dummy just spin around its own axis on the nail when I go around with the scraper? I'm thinking perhaps using two nails a bit apart will prevent this from happening?

A

Yes, I'd go with two nails for buttercream, one for sugarpaste/fondant.

Maybe even 3 in a triangle actually.

Fab idea Siany. I have some clean but used drums (only for personal use) I could sacrifice just for this!

Ateco 3-pronged pivot:

https://www.google.com/search?q=ateco+pronged+pivot&client=firefox-a&hs=jGL&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=nts&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=csMqVNX4Hoe6yQSNvoHIBA&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAg&biw=1280&bih=638

AWhy don't you just fold a piece of duct tape or packing tape over so it is sticky on both sides and tape the dummy to the turn table?