HI everyone, I have a question, and hope someone can help!!!
I will be assembling my first stacked wedding cake. It is 3 tier round 12" 8" and 6"
Each tier will have it's own board.....
My question is...... If I put dowels in each tier, will I still need to put a large dowel through the middle of all 3?????
And how many dowels do I put in the 12" and in the 8"????
Thanks ever so much to you all!!!! 
Are you planning to transport the cake fully assembled? If so, then some recommend the center dowel through all layers.
For smaller cakes, like a two tier, I like the hollow columns rather than wooden dowels. I would use 4 in the 12", but maybe only 3 in the 8" (my husband always reminds me that a tripod is more stable than a quad-pod).
For three tiers, esp if you are transporting assembled, the SPS plate system is a great way to go. Also uses hollow legs, but they lock onto the bottom of the plate. The plate has a small peg sticking up into the tier above so it won't shift.
(Some have reported problems with even the center dowel shifting and tearing through the cake. I have seen this used on the cake shows, though))
Some people say the center dowel all the way thru is only required when transporting fully assembled, however I always use it, even if I assemble on site, just for the assurance that it will not topple or shift if the cake table is jostled or moved at all during the receptopn....that's just me, I feel it is well worth it for the "insurance"... I also prefer using the plastic hollow dowels in each tier as apposed to the skinny wooden ones, and get a longer, thicker wooden dowel for the center support. I do however use straws for smaller cakes, but use more of them when I do so. I have never used SPS, I find it perfectly stable using doweling, but many people swear by SPS on larger stacked cakes.
(my husband always reminds me that a tripod is more stable than a quad-pod).
I disagree with your husband. A three-legged stool can tip, a four-legged chair won't tip without lifting it. Same thing with a camera tripod that can get knocked over easily... four legs--less likely.
Remember when they quit making 3-wheel ATVs? Too dangerous... they tipped over too often. You can only buy quad ATVs now.
I am going to add my "two cents" here regarding a center dowel. Using a center dowel will stabilize your cake boards. If the cake, on the board, wants to shift, IT WILL. If someone bumps into a cake table and the cake starts to tilt, the center dowel is not going to keep it from going. Same thing with transporting the cake. Don't let the idea of using a center dowel make you overconfident. And yes, go ahead, ask me how I know. 
As for the dowels, 4 dowels in each of your tiers should be more than sufficient.
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