Hiya folks, I have never made anything bigger than an 8,10,12 tier but I've been asked for a 5 foot tube train for May, Im not certain how heavy it's going to be yet- will have to get the caculator out- my biggest worry though is the board, I was thinking foam core but would wood be better (at around half inch thick?)? if so would you buy board foil and cover it or would you use something different?

And any tips at all you may have on big cakes would be hugely appreciated!

Hope you can help

Gray

I would use a wood board. Do you have vehicle big enough to transport it?

Plywood.

That's one giant cake!

5 foot long I assume you mean? Successfully carrying a 5/6 foot board even with an army of helpers will be a major undertaking, if even possible. I would recommend making each carriage on a separate board and putting them together to make up the train when you get to the destination. (I assume there will be multiple carriages unless it is a near life size train, in which case the height would be incredible and aonther issue)
I would put concrete or ballast (I think it is just in stations the sleepers are concreted in?) around the base of the cake and probably put some rails and sleepers there too just to decorate the "ground" and disguise the joins on the boards.

Good luck, it sounds like a fun cake, even if a lot of work!

Definitely wood covered with cake foil. FYI - have several people there to move the cake. While two people might be able to carry the load, even plywood will flex considerably over a five foot span. That could ruin any detail work you've done

You guys are great this is super help, this is a really exciting but still quite daunting project! i hadn't considered the size of my car... I think I'll go for carrages on seperate boards and make the base in sections, its going to be a scale replica so i recon each carrage will be about 8" tall so should be pretty managable. I also think i'll play with the design to require less board and maybe fewer carrages. Working out a price for this will be some calculation!
Thanks again

I would probably go for laminated MDF for the board, and if possible cover with fondant, or buttercream if that is easier for you. If you do have to hire a van and another person to help you carry it, you should include the cost of that in your price. Make sure you can get it out of your front door!