Is there a trick to it or what????
I'm still having trouble getting the cake to set close to the cake I'm stacking it on.. I always seem to have a gap...
What am I doing wrong?
I cut all my straws the same length... and i still have that stupid gap....ugh..
HELP!!!!

Try to let your cakes settle before you stack them. Think I read somewhere where you should do that overnight. Berore you fill your cakes are you making a dam around it an letting that set a while? I fill my cakes in a different way that is hard to explain but I will try: Take a sharp knive and cut in about 1/4 inch around the cake. Then lift out that circle that you now have. You will then have a nice well or dam to put your filling in. The tiers should then be flat one on top of the other. By the way, do you crumb coat first and then let that firm up before you frost?

It sounds to me like your dowels are cut too long.

The top of the dowel should be a millimeter or two below the surface of the icing, as measured at the lowest point of your cake surface. You want the stacked cake to sit on the icing, not be sitting on top of the dowels that are higher than the surface of the icing. That's a dangerous situation as far as stability goes.

Crumb coat? Want a great idea so you'll never have to do that again? In each cake pan, pour a bit of vegetable oil (this works the best), spread it all over the inside of the pan (should be a thin coat), cut a piece of wax paper the size of the bottom of your cake pan. Then cut strips about 2" wide (each piece will be 12" long) and put them around the sides, just meeting the bottom piece. Pour your cake batter (no flouring needed!) and bake as usual. (Hint...if you want a taller cake, just make the side piece of wax paper a little wider and fill the pan fuller). When the cake is done, (and still hot) cut the top of the cake with a serrated knife so it's level across the top. Place another piece of wax paper on the top, place a cutting board, cardboard (or anything you want to flip the cake onto) and turn it upside down. Pull the pan off carefully, making sure the wax paper stays on the cake. Now you leave it out overnight (I never decorate the same day I bake the cake) or freeze one layer for ease in placing it on top. It's not necessary to refrigerate the cake. It's totally sealed! When you're ready to decorate, pull the wax paper off and you won't have hardly any crumbs!

Patti, your advice is sound but it should be noted that waxed paper is not meant for baking, because the wax melts at a relatively low temperature.

Parchment paper, which is coated with silicone, is perfect for baking, and especially so for lining and collaring cake pans as you suggested.

I understand what you're saying, but I have used wax paper for over 25 years in my wedding cake business and have never had a problem. I used parchment paper when I was the pastry chef at Jumer's Castle Lodge, but for the home baker, wax paper is much less expensive.

I agree that wax paper will work, but I just don't like the taste of wax in my baked goods. I'm probably just quirky, though.

I wish Sam's sold big rolls of it like they do plastic wrap and foil! I love parchment paper and use it for everything.