Jeffery Arnett, from Salyersville, KY has more than 25 years experience in cake decorating and is semi-retired.  He currently bakes wedding and large celebration cakes on a consultation only basis. .He can be contacted at jsarnett@foothills.net  Jeff sent us this Evaluation of our cake support system and we would like to share it with you. It has been reformatted for Internet presentation but is presented as he sent it.

Customer Evaluation of Logicpic’s Cake Support System.

By: Jeffery Arnett

Even for experienced cake designers, assembling and safely transporting a multi-

 tiered cake can be a daunting task.  Over the years, various means of internal support  have been used to insure that a heavy tiered cake does not come crashing to the ground.

 Bakers have employed many means of support.  Typically, wooden or plastic

 Dowel rods are cut to the height of the tier and placed in a circular pattern in the cake. The next higher tier is then placed on a support board, usually cardboard or masonite, and  placed atop the lower tier.  The dowels provide the necessary support to prevent the weight of the upper tiers from crushing the lower cakes, which would spell disaster. Often, a large dowel rod is sharpened and driver down through the stack of tiers to anchor the entire cake and add more stability. In the past few years, a number of support systems have appeared on the market, made of various materials ranging from plastic to stainless steel, and available at a range of costs from a few dollars to more than one hundred. Through an inquiry concerning an email newsletter I received, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to test the new tiered support system available from Logicpic. The system they’ve created is very simple to use and available at a very attractive price.  A cake designer can simply include the cost of the components in the price of the cake, or if they choose, have the items returned.  The support system components are easily sanitized for reuse.

 

 

 

  System Components

 

 Logicpic’s new system includes a one-half inch thick foamcore base, which is

 pre-drilled to accept the center support dowel, hexagonal shaped plastic support rings which accept six wooden dowels cut to the height of the tiers, and three-sixteenths inch thick foamcore separator boards for the tiers to be placed on.  Support boards are pre-drilled with a center hole to allow them to be slid down over the center support dowel. All the components are completely safe for food use. Using the new system is extremely easy.  All tiers are iced on appropriately sized support boards, and can then be chilled until firm if desired.  Once the finished height of the overall cake is determined, the large center dowel can be cut to the desired height. For ease in sliding the tiers over the dowel, the upper end can be sharpened with a pencil sharpener. Remember to include an extra inch of length on the center dowel, since the pre-drilled hole is one inch deep. Once the center dowel is in place on the base board, the largest tier can then be slid down over the center dowel.  A few dabs of icing on top of the base board will help to anchor the largest tier in place with no movement.

 

 

 

                                      

Bottom Tier on Base Board

 

 Once the height of the tier is measured, six dowel rods are cut to this height and

 placed into the feet of the hexagonal support rings.  The support ring is then slid down over the center dowel and pushed into the cake until the ring is flush with the top of the tier.  A small round tip can then be used to spread a small amount of icing on the support ring.  This will help to hold the next tier in place.

 

 

 

  Bottom Tier with Support Ring

 

 With the support ring in place, the next tier is slid down over the center dowel rod

 until it rests securely on top of the support ring.  The height of this tier is then measure, dowels cut and placed in the support ring, then the next tier is added and this process is repeated until all the cakes are in place.  A nice advantage to using the center dowel is that all the components and tiers are automatically centered without the need for making measurements or marking placement of the tiers.

 

  

 

Partially Assembled Cake

 

 Once the entire cake is assembled, any necessary borders, flowers or other details

 can be added to complete the cake.  The completed cake can now be safely and

 confidently transported to the reception site without fear of shifting or falling tiers.

 I am very impressed with the ease of use and economy of the Logicpic Tiered

 Support System and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a simple and

 dependable means to assemble a tiered cake.

 

 

 

  Support system components courtesy of Logicpic.

 

Jeffery Arnett

Classic Cakes

Salyersville, Kentucky