HELP!!!!! I am making my first stand up Panda bear, and I took it out of the pan following the directions to a tee, and the cake was cracked and the head fell off!!!!
Should I glue it on with icing??? Should I make another??
What do I do to keep this from happening????
Cake is for birthday tomorrow morning!!!!
Thanks,
emily

I have only made one of these so you may want to wait for more responses, but in my research before hand I discovered that the head falling off is a common problem. There is actually a thread on here about it. In that thread I think I remember some people say that they actually take the head off to secure it with a dowel rod, so all is not lost.
I will look for that thread for you.

I found it ..go to forums do a search for teddy bear..it is under "teddy bear beheaded"

Thanks!
I read what was said. I still don't know if I should make another - or try to ice it first.
Maybe I'll try the icing and see what happens

i just bought a 3d bear pan...now i'm a little nervous about using it.

Well good news! I glued the head back on with icing, and I put two toothpicks in the back of his neck. Decorated it and prayed! The head stayed on, and the cake was a huge hit.
It turned out great. It was really cute and the birthday girl was thrilled!
If you follow the instructions with the pan and make two cake mixes and put them together - you will have plenty of batter for two bears - I figured if it did not work I could do it over again.
My advise would be to handle the pan very carefully when you take it out of the oven - that may have been where I went wrong.

Good luck!

It may have been that the cake mix you were using was too moist.Those pans require a more sturdy mix without adding pudding.I have made it many times and have never had the head fall off but it has cracked.The key is to allow it to cool in he shell quite a bit before you take it out but not so much that it sticks to the pan...Does that make sense? I actually craddle it in my hand and lay saran wrap over the shell and set it back in to cool.Leave the core in also for stability. Freeze it or refridgerate right away to set it.Hope tat helps!!

I think Kiddiekakes as always, hit the nail on the head. The two most important things with these stand-up bear pans is to use a really stable or dense cake batter and to let the cake cool supported in the pan. Most of us let the cake cool about 30 minutes before removing one side of the pan and then either let it cool completely with one side still attached or wrap the inside with plastic wrap and put both sides back on. You need to prop it up for support while it cools too. I believe the instructions recommend using a pound cake type batter.
Freezing the cake before icing or letting it sit wrapped overnight helps firm it up.
Don't feel too bad, most people have to try it out three times before getting a sucessful bear cake.
Hugs Squirrelly Cakes

I have this pan and I've read about all the problems with it.. makes me wonder if it's worth the trouble lol.. I bought my pan used from eBay... the lady that sent it to me also sent a wooden insert for where the heater core used in the pan comes out .. she inserts that after the cake is baked and you stand the cake up .. she said she had the same problems with hers and her husband made the insert to put back into the cake so it wouldn't fall or the head wouldn't fall off .. she wraps it with foil and lets whoever she makes it for (probably just family) know that it's in there and to take it out after the cake is cut .. I wonder if you could wrap a styrofoam cone and insert that?? and let people know that it's in there?

Well, the problem with a lot of pans we use, is they are not made for the most ideal situation when you are baking. Ideally you use an 8 or 9 inch 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 inch deep pan for best results and anything larger than that either is made like an angel food pan or is a springform pan designed for other types of cakes. But truly this is why we have so many problems and have to adjust how we bake, the time, the method and manner, the density etc.
If you think about the way these bear pans are design, it makes sense that they would give you some issues, particularly if you don't use a dense enough cake batter. So they do require some experimentation, that is for sure. Also, I find, they almost have to be seasoned, where they work better the more often you use them.
I find the biggest problem is that people don't use a dense batter and they get breaking issues. They don't let the cake cool enough in the pan either. Plus what most folks don't realize is that these pans can take more than twice the normal amount of cooling time required. Also these cakes should rest overnight before icing.
Again this is a good case for using the apricot glaze or a simple syrup glace as you can seal in the moisture right away, wrap it when cool and let it sit overnight to firm up.
But once you get the hang of it, they are worthwhile, if you can keep your patience until then, haha!
Hugs Squirrelly Cakes