Welcome to the Cake Decorators Q&A

Transporting 4 tier heavy cake plus Spinning Turntable.

Just wondering what the best options where regarding the above.
1. Dowel / stack and transport to venue but concerned about the weight of the cake.
2. Dowel and then stack at venue – however I am concerned I might damage the sugarpasted tiered cakes when stacking them on top of each other; therefore would not know how to fix this.
3. When stacking the cakes, do you “drop” the cake on top of the bottom tier, so your hands have minium contact on the sugarpaste?

Also
1. The dowels will be approx. 1cm taller than the cake so the next tiered cake will sit on top of these. Then is this how the cakes are supported, eventhough they are not touching each other?
2. If this is the case then how do you cover this 1cm gap between the cakes?

Finally
1. Do you have any ideas on how to make a motorised spinning turntable to support this heavy Paul Bradford’s chocolate sugarpasted cake (12″,10″,8″ and 6″) on a 20″ cake drum? I have looked online to purchase one but it is very expensive?

Thank you .

Hello Sky Cakes

Personally, I transport my cakes individually and stack at the venue. There’s lots of discussion on transporting tiered cakes here: http://www.cakeflix.com/questions?s=transporting+cake
Some of the answers contain links for cake transporting solutions and for tall cake boxes.

I don’t know how to make a motorised turntable. However if you know someone who is handy with electrics/ batteries, I am sure a lazy susan could be easily adapted. I’m not so sure though whether a lazy susan can take the whole weight of a heavy 4 tiered cake!
How soon do you need your spinning turntable? I bought mine for £30.00 from a company called 360 degrees. They are based in Hong Kong but deliver pretty quickly. I had mine delivered within a week. Have a look at my answer for the company link here:

carousel electric turntable

Why will your dowels be 1cm above the cake? Normally the dowels are cut flush with the surface of the cake. The next tier which is sitting on it’s own cake card/board is placed on the embedded dowels to prevent the two cakes collapsing into one another. The two are stuck together with either ganache, melted chocolate or buttercream. There is no gap between the tiers. Please have a look at Paul’s free lessons on dowelling and stacking cakes here:

Stacking Cakes – Overview

Watch Paul’s technique for lifting and placing tiers on top of one another. You’ll notice Paul lifts the cake with a pallet knife and then supports it from underneath with his other hand before placing it on to the next tier. The sugarpaste is dry enough to handle and position the cakes safely without causing fingerprint damage.
Basicall leave the enrobed cakes to dry overnight before trying to lift them. If you don’t feel comfortable lifting on your own with the knife, have someone support the cake from below enough to help you place it onto the next tier.
Hope the above helps. Please post again if you have more concerns.

Hi,
Thank you for this.
After the cake has been cut how do you take off the stacked cakes without ruining the sugarpaste of the cakes below?

Since the cakes have been stuck down, a limited amount of damage will be inevitable However it is not noticed by guests because, once the bride and groom have made the cermonial cut, the cakes are whisked away into the kitchens by the venue staff. There, they are portioned off for distribution amongst the guest. The staff know exactly how to remove each tier. Once the cakes are portioned, no damage is visible anyway.
If you want to remove the tiers yourself, damage can be limited if ganache is used as the sticking agent between the tiers. In this instance, heat a palette knife in a jug of boiling water, wipe the drips off and insert it under the cake board. Work the knife gently around under the board to break the seal. With a careful upward twist of the wrist the upper cake unsticks. Repeat with all tiers. Royal ice can cause a little more damage because it comes brittle once dry. Even then, not suffcient for concern. I’ve read in other forums, sticking parchment paper down on the surface of the cake before stacking, helps to reduce the damage. I’ve never used this method as all my cakes are stacked at the venue so the ‘glue’ medium never hardens completely.
Hope this helps.