RETURN IT!!!! I bought one too and it is he**!
I think you just saved me some money. I almost bought one of those this past weekend. I would have had I had the 40% off coupon with me at Michaels. I needed to torte a large 12X18 sheet cake. I used a thin slicing knife, the kind you'd use for slicing a roast. It is about 15" long and I just put the sheet cake on my turntable and started turning and slicing and it worked out just fine. I have a pretty stable hand from making pottery for 20 years, so I may be more skilled at holding the knife steady and level.
i was going to buy one...maybe not anymore. i hate teh smaller one so i thoguht the larger one might be better..no? The smaller one doesnt CUT through my round cakes it just tears the edges (which are crispy by then) and makes a big hole in the sides. 
I find that the moister and heavier your cake is the worse it works. It doesn't cut level for me if my cake is heavier. I'm on my second one b/c i thought my first one was twisted. It starts off great but then always seems to cut uneven. There must be a better model out there somewhere! Very frustrating at times!
Let me join in on the "I hate it" side.
I loved my small Wilton leveler but absolutely hated the big one. It never would work properly for me.
I finally bought the Agbay at Cake Camp. It costs about 8 times what the Wilton one costs and is at least 50 times better! Now I no longer dread leveling cakes. It has become really easy!
cant stand mine. I bought the little one, which just mushes the cake. Then I tried the big one. Works great at cutting because it actually has a blade unlike the little one, but it flexes! I can never get a straight cut or level cake because the blade bends or raises up. if I'm going to have to eyeball it anyway, I'd rather just use a bread knife!
I've used mine for about 10 years now. I haven't had a problem but then I use it to level in the pan.
I hate mine too!! I'm thinking about ripping out the blade and putting fishing line in it instead! That blade is so flimsy and twists and flexes everywhere!
I REALLY want an AGBAY, but I just forked over money to get a new 32" silicone rolling pin...
This is my first post, but I just have to chime in on a quick and easy (and cheap!) way to torte a layer. I don't have the large leveler, but I long ago learned that poverty is the mother of invention, so this is what I do, and it works great!
Take 2 long bamboo skewers and a piece of fine dental floss (plain, not mint or cinnamon!) longer than the diameter of your cake. Mark intervals on both skewers, at whatever distance you need (1/2", 1", 1 1/2", etc.) and tie the dental floss to one skewer at the desired level, then tie the other end to the other skewer at the same height. Holding the skewers upright and the floss TAUT, and keeping the ends of the skewers on the tabletop at all times, slowly move the skewers back and forth in a sawing motion as you press through the cake.
It doesn't take much practise to get coordinated enough to hold the line taut, keep the ends on the table, and move back and forth. It also helps to have a helping hand holding the cake on the opposite from where you are cutting.
Hope this helps!
This is my first post, but I just have to chime in on a quick and easy (and cheap!) way to torte a layer. I don't have the large leveler, but I long ago learned that poverty is the mother of invention, so this is what I do, and it works great!
Take 2 long bamboo skewers and a piece of fine dental floss (plain, not mint or cinnamon!) longer than the diameter of your cake. Mark intervals on both skewers, at whatever distance you need (1/2", 1", 1 1/2", etc.) and tie the dental floss to one skewer at the desired level, then tie the other end to the other skewer at the same height. Holding the skewers upright and the floss TAUT, and keeping the ends of the skewers on the tabletop at all times, slowly move the skewers back and forth in a sawing motion as you press through the cake.
It doesn't take much practise to get coordinated enough to hold the line taut, keep the ends on the table, and move back and forth. It also helps to have a helping hand holding the cake on the opposite from where you are cutting.
Hope this helps!
Have you ever tried simulating a cake leveler by taking a sharp knife and making interval cuts in it? That way the dental floss or fishing line has something to keep it in place (so it doesn't slide up and down)?? I've thought about trying this method myself!
Ha, I'm in oposition to almost everyone here. I HATE the small wilton cutter but LOVE the large one. I find the wire on the small one very flimsy and it warps my cake layers. The Large one works great if you slowly slide it back and forth making sure to keep the feet flat on the table.
I have both the smaller and larger one Wilton leveler. I don't use either one of them. The large one doesn't cut level and the smaller one seems to tear the cake. I just use a knife and hope for the best. I also have the large Wilton fondant roller. It is warped! Has anyone else had a problem with that? It's not even usable. It's impossible to get the fondant level with it.
I threw out my large wilton leveler, it never cut straight for me. I had hoped they had fixed it in later models. Now for the small leveler, i used to use that all the time, even for the really big layers, i would drag the leveler as far as i could in each and every direction. Like if you are doing a 12x18 start at each corner and drag as far as you can, then take the plain dental floss and finish the inside of the cake. I would take the dental floss and wrap it around the cake where the ends would meet i would pull accross each other and it would cut the inside of the cake nicely.
Since those days i have invested in an agbay(the single blade) and that is all i use now.
Thank you for this post and the info!!!
I have both Wilton levelers and up until recently, never had a problem with either. Now when I use them my cakes are not coming out straight (when cutting layers).
A bit frustrating and I also thought I was doing something different/wrong! 
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