On previous cakes, I've simply used drinking straws as support between the tiers of stacked cakes.

HOWEVER, I'm making a cake for this weekend for which that won't be an option. I'll need to use a dowel rod. There will be eight layers of cake, totaling about 16" high, so I need to use a dowel to keep it from shifting while I'm transporting it.

How do I sharpen the dowel to get it into the cake board? I'll be using one of the silver-covered cardboard ones from Wilton.

Also, how do I keep the bottom layers on cake from being crushed by the weight of the upper layers and frosting?

Thanks for your help.
~Christina

(bump)

You need to use several smaller dowels in the bottom layer to support the weight of the upper layers. Then 1 dowel going down through all the layers to keep it from shifting. I use a pencil sharpener to sharpen mine - thats all its used for. HTH

I purchased and electric pencil sharpener for the purpose of sharpening dowel rods only, then I sterilize them in boiling hot water prior to use.

As for transporting the cake you must transport your layers separately then assemble the cake at the function. To avoid crushing the layers you would use cake boards underneath each layer.

HTH.

I just use a pencil sharpener to sharpen dowel rods.

As for the other ? I'm not sure... I've only made a couple tiered cakes and I've never had problems with the bottom layer being crushed. good luck

Melissa

I keep a small pencil shapener in my cake decorating kit.

OK, in the end, this cake is supposed to look like one giant pint of Guinness. When I say "layers," I'm talking about them all being the same size and frosted together as one unit.

So how do I transport the layers spearately if I won't be able to smooth out the frosting and decorate the cake at the party location?

(And what is 'HTH?' I'm not familiar with that abbreviation)

~Christina

I cut a 1in. hole in the center of the card boards before I put the cakes on them. Then I just whittle the dowel with a knife enough to make a point.
Works like a charm!
I agree that it is awfully scary and risky to transport a stacked cake fully assembled.

I cut a 1in. hole in the center of the card boards before I put the cakes on them. Then I just whittle the dowel with a knife enough to make a point.
Works like a charm!
I agree that it is awfully scary and risky to transport a stacked cake fully assembled. Anything above 2 layers, I assemble on site.

I use the school type of pencil sharpener that you'd buy for a child for school ... I just make sure and get the type that holds the shavings in a container made onto it.... Dowel between each tier.... one in the center and some around the outer edges of each tier; then next tier to be stacked and so on... I use the Wilton white, hollow plastic dowels that you cut to the height you need. I've used wooden dowels before too but prefer the white plastic ones more ... I always, always assemble at the reception area ... now I have, on 4 tier cakes, assembled them 2 and 2, then stacked on top of the other when I got to the reception hall... this has always worked well for me and I've never had any problems in transporting... remember to set your cakes on non-skid shelf liner in the trunk of your car or van .. you'll never have to worry about them shifting position unless you just take a curve way too fast lol

Well, it IS icey here in Indiana right now, so the curves are going to be fun when delivering. I'm just trying to allow myself a little extra time so that I won't be stressed. I mean, so that I won't be AS stressed! Who am I kidding? I'm always stressed when there's a cake in my car!

Although the cake is going to have about 8 layers of cake, they will be assembled and stacked to look like on big tier (a pint of Guinness when frosted), so I'm not sure that assembling at the party site is an option.

You're going to have to build it at home, no way will you get a guinness label to look decent on site. A few suggestions: put the whole thing on a masonite board first, use cardboard boards between each layer and dowel through the whole thing. That really should give you good support if you're using a nice heavy cake recipe (I wouldn't try it with box cakes, won't be strong enough. I like Colette Peters recipes...you could build your house out of them but they're moist and delicious). Don't forget a blob of icing under the bottommost layer so it sticks to the board (which I cover in contact paper so it's pretty and grease-free. If you do fondant (which would make painting your label a whole lot easier), then you have a little leeway to gently hold the top of the "bottle" while travelling, wrap your hand in a lint-free towel and you can support it from swaying a little bit.
Another thought is to make the bottle lying down? Carve it so it's long and tall lying down rather than standing up? Maybe not as impressive, but certainly more stable for transit. Post pix when you're done, sounds cute!

I have a question for the sharpened dowls....
How do you stick them in the board. I can see if its cardboard, but what about plastic or wood?
Thanks!
( I'm having trouble visualizing here)

If it is a plastic or wood board you'd have to put a hole in it prior to assembling. With cardboard, I just give the sharpened dowel a good tap with a tac hammer.

How far down do you go? I'm sure you don't go all the way through. Do they stay upright?

Don't need to sharpen dowels that support each tier. I have been doing fine cutting them to length and not bother sharpening them.

First, I also use a simple pencil sharpener to sharpen my dowels.

As the others have said, you will need to dowel and board between every 2 layers of cake. Leave space in the center for your long dowel.

A method I've used with success when transporting something of this nature is to insert drinking straws, as you normally would. Then, cut sharpened bamboo skewers to the same height as your straws. Push the skewer pieces INSIDE the drinking straws. Hammer them in until they penetrate the cake board. Use a small piece of skewer as a 'punch' to hammer on since the skewer you're inserting will sink below the level of the drinking straw.

If you're presenting your cake on a plywood or masonite board, add a couple of cardboard cake circles the same size as your board before covering. This way, you'll have something to hammer your sharpened dowel into.

When it's time to hammer in your long dowels - I'd recommend two for this cake - cut them so when they're all the way through, they're shorter than the cake. Use a little piece of dowel to hammer on, as you did with the skewers. Once the long dowels are in, you can cover the holes with icing or fondant or whatever you're doing on the top. Many times, I hammer in the dowels BEFORE I decorate the cake so I don't have to cover up holes in the icing later.

The only time you need to sharpen them is when you are running 1 dowel all the way down the center of all the tiers to hold them together when transporting. I used to be scared to death to transport a cake already assembled, but with the center dowel down the middle, I have never had any shifting.

No, I'm not using a box cake. I'm using a recipe for Chocolate Guinness cake that sounds very moist and stable.

I've thought about doing it lying down, but would REALLY prefer to do it standing up, if at all possible. My goal is to make it look like this:

that looks like it would be very cool, would love to pictures when you done!!

I measure out my dowel so that it's just a little shorter than the entire cake stacked. That way I can run it down the center through each cake layer and each cardboard cake round and end up in the bottom cake layer. Then just fill in the hole in the top with extra buttercream and fondant. What I haven't yet figured out is how to do that if I want a smooth fondant top...it leaves a hole (of course) and so far the cake designs have allowed me to cover that up.

HTH = Hope that helps

For this one I would stack, dowel and then decorate if your covering with fondant. That way you don't have to worry about covering up holes. Good luck!

I would definitely consider covering the cake in fondant too. The fondant will give it more stability and get you that ultra-smooth look you are looking for.

another, very stable option of tall and heavy cakes:

plywood base....dowel glued (and even tacked nailed into base that is sharpened and RISES UP through the layers.

each layer is lowered over the dowel and supported between layers in traditional method of extra non-sharp dowel between layers.

Brilliant...only wish I could pre-plan well enough to be sure my cake didn't end up with the sharp dowel sticking decoratively out the top of my too-short layers!

Also when doing a tall cake remember to put no more thab two cakes on a card board then layer the next two. Till you get the cake as tall as you want. Then dowel one down the middle to secure it all together.

Doug - what do you use to cut the top of the dowel rod after it's already in the cake?

I'm not Doug, but I use a hand limb cuter, never used outside. And keep it in my cake kit. I pull the dowel up just enough to cut push the dowel back in the cake.

I use dedicated pruning shears to cut my dowels.