Has anyone ever used these? I have a wedding in 2-1/2 weeks. The bride wants these cake stands. Let me know your comments asap. Do they work good. How well do they hold up?
I've used these stands quite a bit in the past couple of years. Originally when I bought mine, the tubes were fairly flimsy ... they were sturdy enough for what they were being used for, but they do get knocked around (as does all of our equipment at some point or another), and dents were relatively common.
I have noticed a change in the tubes in the past year or so, though. They are now made of a thicker plastic and they hold up much better than before.
The plates are another issue. It is difficult to travel with cakes on these plates, as they have that "coupler" on the bottom ... they won't sit level! Much like the center column stand, if I have to transport on the crystal splendor plates, I sit them in a cake pan that has a sheet of "grippy" draped over it so the plate doesn't shift or slide.
You also need to be a little more careful when you wash them, as they are a more fragile sort of plastic. Cracks are common after some use, I believe because of the design. Generally, I use the plates until they just aren't able to hold a cake any longer and I can get a lot of use out of them.
For storage, I use a large clear plastic tub with a colored top that is ONLY for this set. Each tube will come to you in a plastic sleeve, and your plates should come wrapped in bubble wrap. After washing, I re-wrap the plates in bubble wrap, and put the tubes back into their sleeves, and they all get stored in their tub very carefully.
I really have to admit, though, these are some of my favorite plates to use because they're different and, honestly, they're easy to set up. And if you can't afford a higher-priced option, they're worth the $$ you spend. Just take care of them and they'll be fine.
Good luck! 
If I get time over the weekend, I will try to post more pics here of my wedding cakes. I have several that I've done with this set. Most recently, I did a very large wedding cake with 8 satellites that were on "the tubes" (as hubby calls them), and the central cake used clear pillars, had a fountain, etc. It completely filled the round table that was provided! I don't know how I'd have done it if the cake table was rectangular!
Anyhow, these really are very versatile, at least I have found that to be true.
Hope this info helps you.
Odessa
Thanks, I am going to order them today. Do these require extra shipping time? Did you get yours from sugarcraft?
If they have them in stock, they'll ship them right out. And, yes, I believe I bought mine from sugarcraft, but as I'm at work, I really can't be sure. One thing I DID do, though, was order them online, and there was a box near the end of the process where you can put comments or shipping instructions, etc. I generally put something like "please rush, local supplier out and Bride has her heart set on this set for her wedding cake! Thanks ever so much, you guys are the best!" It's always worked for me in the past. They came UPS (I believe), and the shipping cost, while it did add to the overall cost per item, wasn't really excessive when you considered the weight and the time factor. I think my last order (for a couple extra tubes and several extra bottom plates -- which you will find are sort of teardrop-shaped and really are neat to help you with setup) was at my house in 2 or 3 days. Hope this helps!
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