Leah (or anyone else), where do you buy SPS from? Do you buy from http://www.sugarcraft.com/catalog/wedding/Wplates-pillars.htm? this is the only thing I find when I google and I found the page very chaotic and unprofessional looking so I assumed this is the wrong one. I had totally forgotten about all that I had read about SPS and then just found this thread today.

Also can i add to the questions? If there is no centre rod (which I agree can be false security) and there is a cardboard plate between the plastic plate and the cake, how does the cake not slide between the cardboard and the plate?

And do I understand correctly that the plates have "feet" on them that would counter sink into the cake below it? So when you cut each teir would you lift off the plate (with its attached legs/posts out of the cake below it)? The thing I dont like about the straws I use is that they are in the cake when it is carved. This would mean the cake is "empty" as it is carved, correct?

Also, how is this different/better than Wilton or other plates that have feet which click into pillars that go all the way through the lower cake?

Sorry so many questions! Thanks a million!

Each plastic SPS plate has a tiny little spike in the center that pokes into the cardboard round beneath the cake. I find it helpful to poke the hole in the cardboard first before putting the cake on it, so then when you stack it, the cardboard just slides over the little spot on the center and you know it is stacked securely.

Some people also put icing or carpet tape on the top of the plastic SPS plate to attach it to the cardboard round for even more security.

When I go to cut the cake I just slide a large offset spatula under the SPS plate and lift the tier straight up. The legs remain attached to the plate and lift right out of the cake below

I love SPS! The only trouble I have with it is that I'm kinda a weakling and I have trouble cutting the legs, they are REALLY sturdy! I think I need to get a better cutting tool, can anyone suggest one that works well for them? Thanks

I buy SPS directly from the manufacturer - BakeryCrafts, but I buy a LOT of it. You would probably buy from Oasis Supply.
Yes there is a cardboard under the cake that sitting on top of the SPS plate. You put a god smear of bc (so people use carpet tape) that hold the SPS late to the cardboard.

SPS is better than W because you don't have to cut SPS and the legs are *very* tight and secure in the plates. That's so much better than dowels or straws because with dowels and straws there's nothing tying them physically to the cardboard above. It ALL just balancing.

yes the legs sit on the plate below. Gravity is a powerful thing. The cake will NOT slide off.

When I have people pick up a 3 tiered cake, I put my hand under one side and hold it up at an angle. After they recover, they understand that the system is secure and they're going to be able to move it themselves.

Do any one can send me the web site or link tutorial about the SPS please?

where can i buy them? thanks

LeafO
Do you have a Harbor Freight near you? They sell these small almost craft tabletop saws. I took a class and we used them to cut the SPS legs. It was awesome. She said she got it at harbor freight for $20 or $30. You can order from Harbor Freight online but without seeing the saw in person I'm not sure which one you would want. But great price and easy to use.

jose, read my siggy

Leah,
How do you get the legs into the bottom of the cake plate (it's a very tight fit)? I mostly use buttercream icing on my cakes - only using fondant for accents and decoration. I can't press down on the top of the cake to push it into the layer below either. HELP!!!

[quote="samcfi"]Leah,
How do you get the legs into the bottom of the cake plate (it's a very tight fit)? I mostly use buttercream icing on my cakes - only using fondant for accents and decoration. I can't press down on the top of the cake to push it into the layer below either. HELP!!![/quote]

I'm not sure I understand the problem.
1. Take the collars off the plate.
2. use the plate to "mark" the top of the cake where the plate and leg assembly will go.
4. jam the legs onto the plate.
3. Jam the plate and leg assembly into the cake, lining up the legs where you marked the cake in Step 2.

Thanks sillywabbitz! I'll hafta check those out

The SPS instructions are pretty clear!!
I started using it and love it, I dont think the metal one is very sanitary, I wouldn't want to eat cake that has metal running thru it! When I get my SPS system in, I always wash and dry it, and get it ready to use! It's a dream! I wouldnt use anything else now with my tiered cakes!
That's just my opinion though.

I guess I'm not a very consistent baker or icer....how on earth do you all get your cakes exactly 4 inches high????????????? Until I accomplish that, I really can't make adequate use of sps.

No, the SPS does not allow for a center rod, you don't need it. It is that sturdy.

No, the cardboard does not come with the SPS. This should be obvious when you go to the site to buy them. They show just the plastic plate. The hole part should not throw you for a loop. I believe Leah put up some very good pics to show how to do it.

When it doubt, buy one and try it. Then you will see immediately what is mean by this.

And as for where Leah buys them, she has three places listed in her Sig line.

Trying cake, I think of metal like I think of forks. I use metal with food all the time. There are many food grade and medical grade metals.

@Sangriacupcake, It does take a little practice but it's not near as hard as it sounds. The firs trick is to purchase a sewing ruler. They have a little slide at the top that you can adjust to see how tall your cake layers are with and without filling and icing.

A good leveler really helps. I have an Agbay (worth every penny) and I'm pretty sure Leah does too. That takes all of the guess work out of the height and consistency of the cake.

If you damn between your cake filling this too should be a consistent height. I am going to probably miss quote Leah here but I think she once told me the following:

She tortes her cakes which means she bakes 2 layers and cuts each layer in 1/2 resulting in 4 layers. Each of the 4 layers is 7/8 of inch tall - giving her 1 1/2 inches of cake. Then she uses a number 12 tip to damn between the layers and fill. After that she ices and fondants and that gets her to 4 inches of height. Most of my cakes are not fondant so I do something similar but just frosting on top.

If you're having trouble getting the cakes tall enough then you either have pans that are not the full 2 inches high or you're not putting enough batter in the pans to reach the top of the pan.

It takes some getting used to but once you get your "system" down my cakes pretty much come out the same height every time. Heck, with an Agbay you can even level your cake to 3 7/8 with frosting before you put the fondant on and guarentee that you are at 4 inches. I'm not usually that anal but it can be done.

SPS expects you to be close to 4 inches but a smidge under or over is fine.

I love the sps system. Something else I have done is when I have run out of the plastic dowels that come with the system is to buy the wilton plastic dowels. They don't fit perfectly snug so I add a rope of fondant around the dowel and it fits in the slot pretty securely. The wilton plastic dowels are readily available and can be cut easily, I just use these in a pinch, its worked great for me if my cake isn't 4" and don't have the longer sps dowels.

Cathy's cakes...that's good to know. I'll remember that next time I'm in a pinch. Normally I over order 4 inch legs and always try and keep a pack of 9 inch in case of emergency but you never know when you'll need a quick substitute.

Sadly the wilton ones are so much easier to cut but that also means weaker plastic. I just posted on another forum that I attended a class and a lady had a tiny table top saw (I call it a craft saw) and it worked great for the legs. It was only like $20 or $30 at Harbor Freight

Ok since we're talking batter amounts etc. I have another tip Buy a kitchen scale.

$30 at bed bath and beyond. It has totally changed my baking and my cleanup.

I don't use the Wilton chart for batter amounts any more because some of my recipes rise more than others. For example my white chocolate WASC hardly rises at all but my chocolate cake rises normal so I have to adjust my batter amounts.

I put my pans on my kitchen scale (you can zero it out or not either way is fine). Then I pour in the batter to 2/3 full. I write down the weight. If the cake rises correctly (just over the rim) I keep that amount, if it doesn't rise enough or too much I write that down and next time I adjust. After about 2 rounds of this I have a spreadsheet that tells me amt of batter I need by weight for each size pan for each recipe

Can you tell I'm WAY type A I do the same thing for baking times

I don't think that's a bad thing at all. Every oven and situation is different. Heck, even all measuring cups are not created equal. I like consistency and this extra work is what it takes for that.

Leah,
1. Take the collars off the plate.
2. use the plate to "mark" the top of the cake where the plate and leg assembly will go.
4. jam the legs onto the plate.
3. Jam the plate and leg assembly into the cake, lining up the legs where you marked the cake in Step 2

I've taken the collars off the plates befoe I put the cake on the plates.
Marked the top of the cake with another plate of the same size.
It's getting the legs onto the plate with a buttercream decorated cake on the plate that I'm confused about, and how do I jam the assembly into the cake with the decorated cake on top???

Sorry for the silly questions.

samcfi,
I think this may be an order of opertaions problem Let's use an 6-8-10 3 tier cake as an example. This is going to very closely mimick Leah_s instructions but sometimes it helps to hear it a couple of different ways.

1) Before putting cakes on the cardboard circles. Take the 8 inch cardboard circle and press it firmly onto the 8 inch SPS plate. This will make the indention in the center of the cardboard circle. Remove the circle and using something like a metal skewer push that indention all the way through so the hole is obviouse in the circle. Repeat with the 6 inch cardboard circle.

2) Level, fill and frost the 10 inch cake on whatever base it will be on. Place the 8 inch cake on the 8 inch cardboard circle prepped in step one and frost/decorate as usual. Do the same for the 6 inch cake. These are not on the SPS plates at this point. Just on the cardboard.

3) Remove the collars from the underside of both the 8 inch and 6 inch SPS plate. Being careful to center, press the 8 inch plate (with no legs) into the frosted 10 inch cake to make an impression for lining up the legs later.

4) Take the 4 legs and insert them into the 8 inch SPS plate. There is no cake on the plate. It's just the plate in one hand the legs in the other and insert. Sometimes you have to twist them just a bit to get them to go all the way in. Do the same with the 6 inch plate but don't forget to make the impression in the 8inch cake before attaching the legs to the 6 inch plate.

5) At this point the 10 inch cake is on a cake drum or sturdy board and decorated, the 6 inch and 8 inch cakes are on their prepped cardboards and you should have 2 small SPS table tops, plates and legs assembled that's what I call the SPS structure.

6) Take the 8 inch table top and line up the bottom of the legs with the indentions in the 10 inch cake. Firmly but gently press the 8 inch tabe top into the 10 inch tier. Since the legs are hollow this should not be too difficult. So your 10 inch tier is on the cake drum and now has the 8 inch pillar/plates pushed into it so it really looks just like the plate is sitting on the 10 inch tier. You shouldn't be able to see the legs.

7) Take the 6 inch table top and repeat this process into the 8 inch cake. Please not the 8 inch cake is on your counter sitting on a cardboard. It is not stacked yet. Smear a little buttercream on each SPS plate to help hold the cardboards onto the plates once stacked.

Now that all the cakes are prepped. Take the 8 inch cake on the cardboard and using a large hamburger spatula life the cake and place it on the 8 inch SPS plate. You will have to move it around just a bit to get the hole to line up with the little nub that sticks out of the plate but once you do the cake should be secure.

9) Place the 6 inch cake on the 6 inch SPS plate. Adjust to make sure the hole lines up with the little nub.

10) Add borders or additional decorations and you're done!

I hope that helps.

sillywabbits, that is a great explaination. But, it is very difficult to lift a completely decorated cake with only cardboard, onto the already inserted sps plate, especially if it is all buttercream. It makes my filling bluge (because of the flexability or the cardboard and weight of the cake) and very dificult to not get your fingers into the cake. If the decorated cake is already on the sps plate it is so much more stable to pick up and easier to not get your fingers into the frosting. But, then you can't get the legs on the plates after that either (very difficult)!
Those are the problems I have had.

I'm sorry - and I'm sure I'm wrong - you all will be real quick to holler at me that I am. But none of this sounds secure at all. BC is the only thing keeping your plate from sliding? The legs don't lock into the plate below, just gravity? You guys have been lucky is my opinion. Tipping the cake 30 degrees is not a lot. Cakes can handle being tipped like that for quite sometime. I tip mine a considerable amount while piping on side decorations while only using dowels. No slippage at all. So, I'm still not convinced it's any better or any worse than the dowel alternative (as long as you take steps to make sure your dowels are level). It's just another method.

Oh - like a center dowel?

It does not extend through the cake. To the best of my knowledge it is fairly short, but catches that cardboard before it can go sailing off.

I'm sure others who are currently using this system will be able to offer better advice. I am just now ordering the SPS system because while the one I have used for a long time has the hollow legs which pass through the cake below, they have no such center tab in the plastic plate. I figure if Leah swears by these SPS they gotta' be good!