Hi all from a slightly daunted newbie...
Ive been working with sponge for all my cakes over the past year but have been asked to sculpt a tractor from fruitcake, with sponge I would bake thin sheets, cut and 'glue' layers with buttercream, but am I able use the same method for fruitcake? I can't shake the feeling that even a spiced or cinnamon buttercream would be wrong for a fruitcake and that royal icing hardening internally would be unprofessional... could anybody help?!

The only thig I would use is either an apricot jam or shredless marmalade. This is what I use to 'glue' marzipan to my fruit cakes. It needs to be heated up, to the boil, so it's like a glaze & easier to spread on.

Definitely no to any buttercreams. Personally I use seedless raspberry jam as I cannot stand apricot and I have never had any complaints from anyone else. It is spread so thinly that you cannot taste it anyway. So provided it has not bits in it and does not have a really strong flavour you can go for any jam.

to be honest i would be thinking a lot before trying this! if you have to carve the fruitcakes, you can run into problems, as its not always easy to cut through the fruit - then you rip out the fruit! means you need to patch up the holes with marzipan.
butter cream isnt an option for fruit cake. something about it makes the bc spoil or something.
xx

the moistness of a fruit cake will cause buttercream to break down, please dont use it, youll run into huge problems! i would go for the jam you only need a very fine spreading of it make it stick so any flavor will do, i prefer apricot, and have never boiled it. just give it a bloody good stir before you spread it

Thanks everyone, I'm going to have a trial run in miniature I think... that way I get an extra xmas cake to eat up!!

brincess_b I'm keeping your note in mind, I'm also going to test making a 'mould' out of salt dough to blank off the space in the tin I would otherwise have carved out, I think I'll cover it with foil so I don't get any cross contamination...

Thanks again!

Gray

Fruit cakes can be carved but you need a good knife and carve slicing to and fro, not straight down, and I usually have it nearly frozen to do it. The jam is definitely the way to go, and any jam at that.