leahs, i'm making 3-tier cake, 9 6 3 round. do i need to use sps? or simple dowels will be fine? i don't deliver my cakes so it will be traveling stacked/assembled. it will be all chocolate cakes then covered in fondant....

Well . . .
SPS doesn't make a 3" plate, so you couldn't use it under the smallest tier anyway.

I use SPS on EVERY cake that goes out my door.

I'd use an SPS plate and leg assembly under the 6" and dowels under the 3" tier. Might as well give that little cake a good foundation.

i'm not sure if SPS is available here in our country... but i will try to get hold of it, its better to be safe than sorry... i'll try to find it, got 1 week to locate a supplier he. i just hope they are selling it by plate... wish me luck

thanks leahs =)

If you are accumstomed to using dowels, you can do that. You may not want to try a new system when you're trying to get an order out for a customer. You might try asking on the Oasis Supply site or on the Bakerycrafts site if there are distributors in your part of the world.

so this is not reusable at all? i'm thinking for a wedding cake with 4 tiers, you would need 3 plates and 12 pillars...guessing about $14 figured into the cost of the cake? hmmm, i know the other one (SFS) *is* reusable but cost a lot more. and of course, the PIA factor of having brides putting down a hefty deposit. but, if you do enough cakes a year, it will pay for itself. ugh, decisions, decisions...lol!

Leah I got SPS for Christmas.

I LOVE it. It was so easy to use and to clean. But I have a question. In your wonderful instructions you talk about leveling/filling your cakes so that you always get 4 inches in height.
Here is my delima. In your instructions it says to cut layers to 7/8 inch. If you have 4 layers at 7/8 inches you only have 1/2 of space for filling. When I torted and filled my cakes I ended up way taller than 4 inches. I do torte my cakes so that gives me 3 layers of filling.

How exactly do you fill your cakes? Right now I've been torting and using the coupler without a tip to make the buttercream damn and that creates seems to create a lot more height.

Any thoughts?

Thanks

Thank you sooo much!

I do love this system and have been using it for a while but I do struggle with getting my cakes 4" high. I don't like to tort so I bake 3 layers and have 2 layers of filling. I'm working on it though! I try to bake my layers 1" tall and then fill with 1/2" or less of filling.

I do have a suggestion for the collars that are removed from the plates. I glue them to the bottom of my cake base which elevates my cake base and allows for my fingers to get under the stacked cake for easy pickup and placement on a table.

I just read all the info given by Leahs (thank you so much), i've saved the instructions and i'm really glad i did read them all as I nearly ordered the Wilton hidden pillars until I noticed Leahs said they are not the same.

I've had a quick look on the net and can't find the sps in the UK, I have e mailed Bakery Crafts (I hope they are the right people) and asked where I can buy them here.

I don't need them until April, I was going to use wooden dowels for my friends 3 tier wedding cake... now i'm worrying about transporting it after the horror stories on here

I would like to get them early so I can have a practise before the big day.

Thanks again Leahs for all your help

Well, I'll be using SPS for the first time this weekend & am nervous as heck--like sick to my stomach. It'll be my first tiered cake w/ it.

I do have a couple of question though

1) I use a crusting buttercream & my worry is that lifting the board to put on the plate will leave cracks all in the buttercream. I'm wondering if those who use a crusting buttercream have any tips?

2) Since the cake is for a friend's shower I'll probably be the one cutting (people have a "phobia" of cutting cakes). How in the heck do I go about doing that?

3) Next month I'll be using it on a cake that has a styrofoam bottom tier. Do I just "pretend" like the dummy is like my foam core & go from there?

Thanks so much leahs & for a quick response.

I did forget to ask.

When I pull out the SPS plate will the legs come out too or will I need to cut around them? It's just nice to know in advance so I'm not standing there looking like a dummy?

Does icing stick to the bottom of the plates? Should I dust the top of the cake w/ PS before putting the plate in it?

yes, the legs will come out with the plate. (That's how tightly they fit.) If you use a crusting bc, then just let it crust and it should not stick to the plate. That's what Indydebi does. I use a non-crusting bc, so I sprinkly coarse sugar where the plate will sit.

My tiers always end up over 4"...will this system still work?

It really is best to make your cake tiers 4" tall.

Why? 1) Because all the cutting charts assume that height when providing a cutting diagram and serving number, and 2) most caterers will bring a 5" or possibly 6" plate to serve the cake on, so the 4" tall slice looks better.

However, if you just don't want to go by the industry standards, then yes, SPS legs also come precut in 5", 7" (with one extension) and 9" (with two extensions or the 9" 1-piece leg) in additional to the 4" leg.

The system is considered disposable which my customers LOVE - nothing to return. I add $20 ($30 for a really big one) and not one person has ever complained. I explain it this way. "The equipment charge is for the system that's holding your cake up from the inside. Without it your cake will fall down, so I insist you buy it."

My tiers usually end up just a little over 4", by the time I level my two 2 inch cakes and fill inbetween with buttercream. . . which doesn't make very much difference on the size of the plate. I just didn't know if a 4" would work if the tier is a little over 4. I use the SFS now, and I really love them. Since the acrylic legs screw on, then I can lengthen them a little if needed. They're just so expensive and I have to go to the trouble of being sure I get back all the pieces.

I am not understanding how the layers lock together. for a 10, 8 and 6...you have the 10 inch cakeon the bottom with its own regular board, then put the 8 inch board with 4 legs into the 10 in cake then the 6 " board with 4 legs into the 8 inch cake and the 6" board with 4 legs into the 8 inch cake....is this right...but how does each layer stay tightened to each other..is it the little hole in the center that is on the peg? It just doesn't seem right to me...I think I'm missing something........

You smear bc onto the SPS plate, then sit the cardboard holding the cake on top. The hole in the cardboard goes over the peg. That's all there is to it and it is quite secure. Try it once and it will make more sense.

OK...thank you...can't wait to try it....I'm looking on GSA and am only seeing the Wilton ones........

hey leahs! I really should have listened to you after the wedding cake that was slightly leaning but after a cake actually collapsed, I finally took your advice and used this system! I will NEVER EVER EVER go without this system again. It's incredible and worth every dime to my brides! They are all happy to pay for it!

I am curious what you use for leveling and torting your cakes? I am still using the giant Wilton leveler and it's a piece of crap! Just thought I had remebered you suggesting something else one time?? Thanks a million for your advice!

always a good topic to revive and revisit.....

I'm glad I read through the posts as I was wondering what SPS meant and when I have the opportunity to do a stacked cake I'll want to try the SPS system!

Are their versions for square cakes or just the round?

Thanks for all of this wonderful info, Leahs! I've been wanting to try this.

Thanks!

Yes, they have square plates too. The best price is on oasis.com but there is a minimum order requirement.

Thanks, I ordered and received today. I will be trying these in a couple of weeks...wish me luck.

how does everyone get their cakes exactly 4 inches high? I am never able to get the right height and it ends up making a disaster out of the whole thing.

I use an Agbay to trim each layer to precisely 7/8 inch. Then I use a portion scoop to measure out the same amount of filling between each layer.

Only the part of the tier where the legs go has to be 4" / 4.25". If the edges are slopped that's not a problem.