Hi all,

I am making a 3 tier cake and i need to put dowels in all the tiers plus 1 dowel thru the top tier....

Problem is that the dowel is 12.5" and the cake with the top tier in place 20".

Do i insert the dowel and follow with another dowel right after so it can reach the top???

thanks all

I've never used the dowel through the center before. I've always been too scared to pound that thing down through the boards But it seems to me that one dowel on top of the other is not going to be stable. I'd almost say it would be safer to go without the center dowel than use two. Someone else with more experience may know better though.

I think that's a great solution

Good idea. I'd add the top tier on-site.

how tall are your cakes? cause 12.5 inches should have been good if it was stacked. i think your solution is good. good luck

most people buy the yard long dowels from the craft store or home improvement store for this purpose. Not sure whether they are food safe though. I can also buy 36" long marshmallow dowels which are perfect for this too. Do you have time to buy a long one?

I'm curious... just like Julzs71... how tall are your cakes??? If a three-tier cake is 20" tall, those tiers would be more than 6" tall apiece! If that's the case, I would definitely use a center dowel through your 10" & 14" tiers.

I will be making my son's wedding cake in January, they want a 6 tier stacked cake to feed at least 300. I will have a 16" 14" 12" 10" 8" and 6" for the anniversary topper. I plan on using the larger plastic hollow dowels, decreasing the # of dowels used pr tier as the tier size decreases (ie. 7 dowels for 16" etc.) Each of the layers (tiers) will be comprised of 2, 2 " layers, 4" altogether pr. layer. Using buttercream then fondant pr. tier. I am wondering how tall I should cut each dowel rod to-to the top of the fondant? Would that make each dowel approx. 5 " tall? Do I need to have one dowel rod the entire heigth of the cake to go down the middle? Wouldn't that mean I would have to have a hole cut through each cake plate? I have never made a stacked cake with this many tiers before, now I'm concerned after reading this blog .

dbond,
you should look into using the SPS for your support, especially for a cake this large then you wont have to worry about a center dowel. But the other thing you need to consider is that this baby is going to be extra heavy, you'll surely need a wooden base board with feet under it so you can get your finger tips under it to just pick it up. and someone to help you carry it, anywhere!!!