I didn't get to go to the convention but I'm just wondering if they had the Cake Safe demo there. Scott Clark Woolley's newsletter this month had a mention of it and I checked out the website. Very expensive but a good idea. Anyone see it in person?

Cake Safe??

I saw the website. Like you said very expensive . the cost just wouldn't be justified for the amount of cakes I do.

It would be interesting to hear what people thought of it if they saw it in person.

It's a box that is constructed out of what appears to be plexiglass and you put it together around your cake. It has a long spike that goes down through the middle of the cake and claims you can turn the cake to a 45 degree angle and the cake stays put. You can transport a cake anywhere and even slamming on the brakes won't damage the cake.

I'm thinking I could make one with some plexiglass and piano hinges and a few other things from Lowes (former general contractor...). Probably be less than $100 in materials. I was just wondering if anyone got an up close look at theirs.

I saw a wonderful box made of PVC pipe and clear vinyl covering--Vicky Harlan it was I believe had them--I would prefer an opaque covering but the boxes were awesome and I'm pretty sure she said she sells them.

One tiny little factoid about plexiglas and piano hinges--plexiglas is very difficult to drill though properly because when you back the drill out you crack the (%$#@) plexiglas--ask me how I know --heh heh heh heh

You need an expert to drill the holes for you or practice a ton--

But all that to say--nice wide tape holds plexiglas in place too--no worries. Will even fix the (%$#@) cracks you made with the drill.

thread where this was discussed before:

http://www.cakecentral.com/cake-decorating-ftopict-644464-lexan.html

Sorry, been out of town for a few days and didn't see that one.

I still think I'll run to Lowes and buy the plexi and piano hinges. They sell it in 24" wide pieces here and that's about how tall I want mine. I also have a drill press so I might be able to drill the holes without cracking anything. If I can piano hinge the four sides together, it should collapse flat for storage. I'm thinking door hinges require screws that are too long and will definitely crack it. Piano hinges can use short screws and have a lot more surface area to distribute the stress over instead of it all being on a couple of screw holes. A wooden top and bottom with a routed groove for the plexi to sit in and a long threaded rod through the middle with washers and nuts on the ends. Need feet on the bottom to keep it up off the nut and washer. That way I can get my hands under it to carry it too. I'm thinking it might be easier to build the cake on it with everything hole punched first. It won't be pretty but it will be cheap and functional. I'm so not the stress junkie and anything that keeps my adrenaline down during a delivery is an investment in my continued good health. If anyone wants to see my prototype later this week, let me know and I'll post pix.

No, not bolting the hinges on. But that is a good idea if the screws don't work. I was using washers and nuts to hold the rod down the middle in place... I'm now thinking bubble tea straws to line the rod path through the cake tiers and run a threaded rod (stainless if I can find it) down the middle of the tiers. On the piano hinges, I was thinking of keeping all four sides attached to each other permanently but you're right, the alternating sides on the two corners I want to fold flat would be better than piano hinges. I'm thinking of folding it so it's flat like a box when you break it down so it can go on a shelf. The the top and bottom just come off. If you put the bottom tier on the bottom piece, run the rod down through the bubble tea straw center lining and out of the bottom of the box, you can washer and nut it then (if you have feet on it that allow hand movement under it). Add the rest of the tiers by feeding the rod through from the bottom until you have the cake stacked. Finish whatever decorating you need to do. Place the four-sided plexi box around it for the four sides and then add the top which is a mirror image of the bottom and washer and nut it so the rod is held in place and the plexi is caught between the top and bottom in the grooves. I think they have 1/4" or 3/8" plexi at Lowes that I was going to buy to make some display cases. I think that would be thick enough to hold small shallow screws (not much bigger than eyeglass screws) but I'm planning to pre-drill the holes with the drill press. I've used my table saw to cut the plexi before and not had any problems with it shattering so I'm thinking it'll take a drill bit if it's that thick and I go slow. I know others have talked about just using boxes but I would like something that I can wash and sanitize. I don't like the idea of using boxes that I have no idea what filthy floor in some warehouse or grocery store they've sat in for how long. Cardboard harbors roaches too. Even cake boxes are usually on the bottom shelves next to people's feet in the stores. Ugh. I've never been successful at draping them in plastic either. Having taken microbiology in nursing school and with a health inspector for a husband, I'm seriously germaphobic. Help me find the flaws in this plan before I spend money, please...