I have cake separator plates (wilton) and I've seen both dowl rods and bubble tea straws used as supports for layers. My question is will wooden skewers (think shush-ka-bob) work? they are about 10" long with a sharp point on one end, buttttttt... they are 3/16" wide. are they too small (width/diameter) or would they be okay if I used enough of them? Also, do I cut them even with the butter cream or just above or below? I have a whole box (about 1,000) and don't have anything else to use them for so I really hope they will work 
they are 3/16" wide.
they will absolutely work fine. they're typically called meat skewers (not the thin skewers for shish-kabobs), and are usually 4.5 inches long. Don't use more than you would use for any type of dowel, it will only weaken the cake in perforated lines.
CWR41 is right. It's all I used to use before I found the right straws. I cut these supports even with the top of my fondant.
i would use those only for the center dowel going down through 2 tiers or more, but not for the actuall support of the tiers. Why, because of the sharp point. if you push them in and then cut them level with the top of your buttercream, what is stopping the weight of the tiers above actually pushing the points into the cake board at the base of the cake? it could then come unstable. better to use 1/4" wooden dowels, or boba tea straws
I'm pretty frugal, but I'd really just go buy (or "borrow") some good quality straws (the larger in diameter, the better).
The hollow cylinder (straw) is much stronger & more stable than any skinny stick.
Straws are easy to cut, don't splinter, are easy to find in the cake, you only need half as many as reg. wooden dowels (so I'd think 1/4th as many as skewers), and are less prone to slipping & sliding (think going from l to /) in moist, greasy environments (CAKE).
JMHO
Rae
4.5" dowels are perfect because you're only cutting off the sharpened point (.25") leaving .25" to account for icing and the remaining 4" for the cake height. Not made from bamboo, they're Northern Hardwood yet easy to cut because you only need to score the point and bend it off (without splintering).
i would use those only for the center dowel going down through 2 tiers or more, but not for the actuall support of the tiers. Why, because of the sharp point. if you push them in and then cut them level with the top of your buttercream, what is stopping the weight of the tiers above actually pushing the points into the cake board at the base of the cake? it could then come unstable. better to use 1/4" wooden dowels, or boba tea straws
If using 10" dowels, you'd use the lower portion to get two correct height dowels and throw away the remaining top piece with the point.
These are sharp on one end but I was going to cut that end off instead of the flat one. They are not bamboo either. I think are the same wood as an actual dowel from a craft store i just didn't know if they were too small in diameter or not. hope they work and Thanks for all the replies!
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