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Poly Dowels? Are they strong enough?

post #1 of 9
1/4/12 at 8:13pm
Thread Starter 
I have a 5 tier cake. Each tier is 5" high, and I am using 1/4 inch cake drums under each tier. Will poly dowels be a strong enough support the weight? Bottom tier is 18" square, next is 16" round, then a 12" square, then 11" round, then a 7" square.
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post #2 of 9
1/4/12 at 8:44pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cakeandparty

I have a 5 tier cake. Each tier is 5" high, and I am using 1/4 inch cake drums under each tier. Will poly dowels be a strong enough support the weight?



If you're talking about Wilton 3/4" diameter Plastic Dowel Rods,
http://www.wilton.com/store/site/product.cfm?id=3E3127EA-475A-BAC0-5F98F056B4A6DC92&killnav=1
yes, they're strong enough.

Quote:
Originally Posted by cakeandparty

Bottom tier is 18" square, next is 16" round, then a 12" square, then 11" round, then a 7" square.



The problem I see with this is that your 12" square tier won't fit on a 16" round tier--it needs to be on a 17" round or larger to avoid having the corners overhanging.

Here are the right angle measurements if you want to consider other sizes:
4" 5.66
5" 7.07
6" 8.49
7" 9.9
8" 11.31
9" 12.73
10" 14.14
11" 15.56
12" 16.97
13" 18.38
14" 19.8
15" 21.21
16" 22.63
17" 24.04
18" 25.46
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post #3 of 9
1/4/12 at 9:55pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the help, I will change the sizes, my poly dowels aren't wilton, they are ck but same thing I think, hollow.
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post #4 of 9
1/5/12 at 9:35am
cakeandparty,

i use the poly dowels also,they are like the wilton plastic dowels but with a smaller diameter. they take up less space than the wilton one's,and are just as strong or sturdy.
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post #5 of 9
1/5/12 at 4:09pm
Thread Starter 
Ths is the biggest cake I have ever made, I was just feeling the weight of the second tier so heavy! The CK brand has skinny dowels to put inside the wide ones I think I will use those too!
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post #6 of 9
1/6/12 at 10:59am
Yes those dowels will work fine - but you can switch to an SPS system for even more security if you are worried about it.
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post #7 of 9
1/7/12 at 3:01pm
Thread Starter 
too late to switch now, cake is due tomorrow. Is there a guide on dowel placement for maximum support? I am assembling at the hall.
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post #8 of 9
1/7/12 at 3:12pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by cakeandparty

too late to switch now, cake is due tomorrow. Is there a guide on dowel placement for maximum support? I am assembling at the hall.



This might help:
http://www.wilton.com/cakes/tiered-cakes/stacked-tiered-cake-construction.cfm

You can use fewer poly dowels than shown in the illustration.
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post #9 of 9
1/7/12 at 3:50pm
These are poly dowels. I have used the smaller ones. They are like the wilton wooden ones. You cut them with scissors. They did work great in the cake i did. I see they have a bigger size also. They would be more like the wilton plastic dowels. they would be great also. I got my smaller ones from another site when i ordered some other things.hth

http://www.globalsugarart.com/cat.php?cid=1168&s=&name=Poly-Dowels%20Cake%20Supports
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