It seems that whether I'm trying to roll a ball out of fondant or gum paste, I always (ALWAYS) have what I'll call an inherent crack in the dough. It's never a solid ball of dough. I knead the dough, I reshape it, but it's never a solid ball of dough - there is always a crack there. HOW IN THE WORLD DO YOU REMOVE THIS BLOODY CRACK?????????????????????? I'm trying to mold a character, and I need a ball of dough. But I need a ball without a crack in it.

Are you kneading it really well with a little bit of shortning first? The shortning helps make a nice smooth surface.

Yes, I am kneading w/ shortening. But there is always a crack. And when I try to roll into a ball shape, the crack certainly affects the integrity of the ball.

For little balls, I just keep rolling and rolling in the palm of my hand and the heat from my hand kind of melts the fondant and smooths out that crack. What I have a problem with, is large balls of fondant that are too large to roll in my hands. There always seems to be a little wrinkle when I roll fondant out to cover it...

Rub it between your palms with some heavy pressure. Really press hard while you are rolling it. Once you get the crack out you can reshape it.

I have totally reshaped it while kneading it, and yet the crack, or a new crack, is always there. I wish I could watch someone else do it.

Ask and ye shall receive!!

Thank you so much for the video! That is exactly how I did it. I'm wondering if my gumpate was just too old. I make my own, and this had been in the fridge about 2 months. It wasn't hard, as I had it in two plastic bags and a tupperware container, but maybe it was just too old. What do you think?