diff --git a/api/RSSFeed.php b/api/RSSFeed.php
index 30551eba9..2b119e96a 100755
--- a/api/RSSFeed.php
+++ b/api/RSSFeed.php
@@ -285,7 +285,7 @@ class RSSFeed_Entry extends ViewableData {
 	 */
 	function rssField($fieldName, $defaultClass = 'Varchar') {
 		if($fieldName) {
-			if($this->failover->castingHelperPair($fieldName)) {
+			if($this->failover->castingHelper($fieldName)) {
 				$value = $this->failover->$fieldName;
 				$obj = $this->failover->obj($fieldName);
 				$obj->setValue($value);
diff --git a/core/Object.php b/core/Object.php
index de263ccb2..970bbeea3 100755
--- a/core/Object.php
+++ b/core/Object.php
@@ -96,6 +96,100 @@ abstract class Object {
 		}
 	}
 	
+	private static $_cache_inst_args = array();
+	
+	/**
+	 * Create an object from a string representation.  It treats it as a PHP constructor without the
+	 * 'new' keyword.  It also manages to construct the object without the use of eval().
+	 * 
+	 * Construction itself is done with Object::create(), so that Object::useCustomClass() calls
+	 * are respected.
+	 * 
+	 * `Object::create_from_string("Versioned('Stage','Live')")` will return the result of
+	 * `Object::create('Versioned', 'Stage', 'Live);`
+	 * 
+	 * It is designed for simple, clonable objects.  The first time this method is called for a given
+	 * string it is cached, and clones of that object are returned.
+	 * 
+	 * If you pass the $firstArg argument, this will be prepended to the constructor arguments. It's
+	 * impossible to pass null as the firstArg argument.
+	 * 
+	 * `Object::create_from_string("Varchar(50)", "MyField")` will return the result of
+	 * `Object::create('Vachar', 'MyField', '50');`
+	 * 
+	 * Arguments are always strings, although this is a quirk of the current implementation rather
+	 * than something that can be relied upon.
+	 */
+	static function create_from_string($classSpec, $firstArg = null) {
+		if(!isset(self::$_cache_inst_args[$classSpec.$firstArg])) {
+			// an $extension value can contain parameters as a string,
+			// e.g. "Versioned('Stage','Live')"
+			if(strpos($classSpec,'(') === false) {
+				if($firstArg === null) self::$_cache_inst_args[$classSpec.$firstArg] = Object::create($classSpec);
+				else self::$_cache_inst_args[$classSpec.$firstArg] = Object::create($classSpec, $firstArg);
+								
+			} else {
+				list($class, $args) = self::parse_class_spec($classSpec);
+				
+				if($firstArg !== null) array_unshift($args, $firstArg);
+				array_unshift($args, $class);
+				
+				self::$_cache_inst_args[$classSpec.$firstArg] = call_user_func_array('Object::create', $args);
+			}
+		}
+		
+		return clone self::$_cache_inst_args[$classSpec.$firstArg];
+	}
+	
+	/**
+	 * Parses a class-spec, such as "Versioned('Stage','Live')", as passed to create_from_string().
+	 * Returns a 2-elemnent array, with classname and arguments
+	 */
+	static function parse_class_spec($classSpec) {
+		$tokens = token_get_all("<?php $classSpec");
+		$class = null;
+		$args = array();
+		$passedBracket = false;
+		foreach($tokens as $token) {
+			$tName = is_array($token) ? $token[0] : $token;
+			// Get the class naem
+			if($class == null && is_array($token) && $token[0] == T_STRING) {
+				$class = $token[1];
+			// Get arguments
+			} else if(is_array($token)) {
+				switch($token[0]) {
+				case T_CONSTANT_ENCAPSED_STRING:
+					$argString = $token[1];
+					switch($argString[0]) {
+						case '"': $argString = stripcslashes(substr($argString,1,-1)); break;
+						case "'": $argString = str_replace(array("\\\\", "\\'"),array("\\", "'"), substr($argString,1,-1)); break;
+						default: throw new Exception("Bad T_CONSTANT_ENCAPSED_STRING arg $argString");
+					}
+					$args[] = $argString;
+					break;
+			
+				case T_DNUMBER:
+					$args[] = (double)$token[1];
+					break;
+
+				case T_LNUMBER:
+					$args[] = (int)$token[1];
+					break;
+			
+				case T_STRING:
+					switch($token[1]) {
+						case 'true': $args[] = true; break;
+						case 'false': $args[] = false; break;
+						default: throw new Exception("Bad T_STRING arg '{$token[1]}'");
+					}
+				}
+
+			}
+		}
+	
+		return array($class, $args);
+	}
+	
 	/**
 	 * Similar to {@link Object::create()}, except that classes are only overloaded if you set the $strong parameter to
 	 * TRUE when using {@link Object::useCustomClass()}
@@ -535,11 +629,7 @@ abstract class Object {
 			
 			if($extensions = self::uninherited_static($class, 'extensions')) {
 				foreach($extensions as $extension) {
-					// an $extension value can contain parameters as a string,
-					// e.g. "Versioned('Stage','Live')"
-					if(strpos($extension,'(') === false) $instance = new $extension();
-					else $instance = eval("return new $extension;");
-				
+					$instance = self::create_from_string($extension);
 					$instance->setOwner(null, $class);
 					$this->extension_instances[$instance->class] = $instance;
 				}
@@ -552,7 +642,6 @@ abstract class Object {
 		}
 	}
 	
-	
 	/**
 	 * Attemps to locate and call a method dynamically added to a class at runtime if a default cannot be located
 	 *
diff --git a/core/ViewableData.php b/core/ViewableData.php
index ab78619df..5adbd6788 100755
--- a/core/ViewableData.php
+++ b/core/ViewableData.php
@@ -74,11 +74,7 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 	 * @return string
 	 */
 	public static function castingObjectCreator($fieldSchema) {
-		if(strpos($fieldSchema, '(') === false) {
-			return "return Object::create('{$fieldSchema}', \$fieldName);";
-		} else {
-			return 'return Object::create(' . preg_replace('/^([^(]+)\(/', '\'$1\', $fieldName, ', $fieldSchema) . ';';
-		}
+		user_error("Deprecated in a breaking way, use Object::create_from_string()", E_USER_WARNING);
 	}
 	
 	/**
@@ -89,21 +85,7 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 	 * @return array
 	 */
 	public static function castingObjectCreatorPair($fieldSchema) {
-		if(strpos($fieldSchema, '(') === false) {
-			return array (
-				'className'     => $fieldSchema,
-				'castingHelper' => self::castingObjectCreator($fieldSchema)
-			);
-		}
-		
-		if(preg_match('/^([^(]+)\(/', $fieldSchema, $parts)) {
-			return array (
-				'className'     => $parts[1],
-				'castingHelper' => self::castingObjectCreator($fieldSchema)
-			);
-		}
-		
-		throw new InvalidArgumentException("ViewableData::castingObjectCreatorPair(): bad field schema '$fieldSchema'");
+		user_error("Deprecated in a breaking way, use Object::create_from_string()", E_USER_WARNING);
 	}
 	
 	// FIELD GETTERS & SETTERS -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
@@ -251,15 +233,8 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 	 * @return array
 	 */
 	public function castingHelperPair($field) {
-		if(!isset(self::$casting_cache[$this->class])) {
-			if($this->failover) {
-				$this->failover->buildCastingCache(self::$casting_cache[$this->class]);
-			}
-			
-			$this->buildCastingCache(self::$casting_cache[$this->class]);
-		}
-		
-		if(isset(self::$casting_cache[$this->class][$field])) return self::$casting_cache[$this->class][$field];
+		user_error("castingHelperPair() Deprecated, use castingHelper() instead", E_USER_NOTICE);
+		return $this->castingHelper($field);
 	}
 	
 	/**
@@ -270,7 +245,12 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 	 * @return string
 	 */
 	public function castingHelper($field) {
-		if($pair = $this->castingHelperPair($field)) return $pair['castingHelper'];
+		if($this instanceof DataObject && ($fieldSpec = $this->db($field))) {
+			return $fieldSpec;
+		}
+		
+		$specs = Object::combined_static(get_class($this), 'casting');
+		if(isset($specs[$field])) return $specs[$field];
 	}
 	
 	/**
@@ -280,7 +260,12 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 	 * @return string
 	 */
 	public function castingClass($field) {
-		if($pair = $this->castingHelperPair($field)) return $pair['className'];
+		$spec = $this->castingHelper($field);
+		if(!$spec) return null;
+		
+		$bPos = strpos($spec,'(');
+		if($bPos === false) return $spec;
+		else return substr($spec, 0, $bPos-1);
 	}
 	
 	/**
@@ -386,10 +371,10 @@ class ViewableData extends Object implements IteratorAggregate {
 			
 			if(!is_object($value) && ($this->castingClass($fieldName) || $forceReturnedObject)) {
 				if(!$castConstructor = $this->castingHelper($fieldName)) {
-					$castConstructor = self::castingObjectCreator($this->stat('default_cast'));
+					$castConstructor = $this->stat('default_cast');
 				}
 				
-				$valueObject = eval($castConstructor);
+				$valueObject = Object::create_from_string($castConstructor, $fieldName);
 				$valueObject->setValue($value, ($this->hasMethod('getAllFields') ? $this->getAllFields() : null));
 				
 				$value = $valueObject;
diff --git a/core/model/DataObject.php b/core/model/DataObject.php
index 11ef1b5d3..871ef21c2 100755
--- a/core/model/DataObject.php
+++ b/core/model/DataObject.php
@@ -2007,10 +2007,8 @@ class DataObject extends ViewableData implements DataObjectInterface, i18nEntity
 		
 		// Otherwise, we need to determine if this is a complex field
 		if(self::is_composite_field($this->class, $field)) {
-			$helperPair = $this->castingHelperPair($field);
-			$constructor = $helperPair['castingHelper'];
-			$fieldName = $field;
-			$fieldObj = eval($constructor);
+			$helper = $this->castingHelper($field);
+			$fieldObj = Object::create_from_string($helper, $field);
 			
 			// write value only if either the field value exists,
 			// or a valid record has been loaded from the database
@@ -2156,7 +2154,7 @@ class DataObject extends ViewableData implements DataObjectInterface, i18nEntity
 		}
 		$castingHelper = $this->castingHelper($fieldName);
 		if($castingHelper) {
-			$fieldObj = eval($castingHelper);
+			$fieldObj = Object::create_from_string($castingHelper, $fieldName);
 			$fieldObj->setValue($val);
 			$fieldObj->saveInto($this);
 		} else {
@@ -2409,9 +2407,8 @@ class DataObject extends ViewableData implements DataObjectInterface, i18nEntity
 			return new PrimaryKey($fieldName, $this);
 			
 		// General casting information for items in $db or $casting
-		} else if($helperPair = $this->castingHelperPair($fieldName)) {
-			$constructor = $helperPair['castingHelper'];
-			$obj = eval($constructor);
+		} else if($helper = $this->castingHelper($fieldName)) {
+			$obj = Object::create_from_string($helper, $fieldName);
 			$obj->setValue($this->$fieldName, $this->record, false);
 			return $obj;
 			
@@ -2445,8 +2442,8 @@ class DataObject extends ViewableData implements DataObjectInterface, i18nEntity
 				$component = singleton($rel);
 			} elseif ($rel = $component->many_many($relation)) {
 				$component = singleton($rel[1]);
-			} elseif($info = $this->castingHelperPair($relation)) {
-				$component = singleton($info['className']);
+			} elseif($className = $this->castingClass($relation)) {
+				$component = $className;
 			}
 		}
 
diff --git a/core/model/Database.php b/core/model/Database.php
index 51b99889c..25850989c 100755
--- a/core/model/Database.php
+++ b/core/model/Database.php
@@ -313,7 +313,7 @@ abstract class SS_Database {
 					$fieldSpec=substr($fieldSpec, 0, $pos);
 				}
 				
-				$fieldObj = eval(ViewableData::castingObjectCreator($fieldSpec));
+				$fieldObj = Object::create_from_string($fieldSpec, $fieldName);
 				$fieldObj->arrayValue=$arrayValue;
 				
 				$fieldObj->setTable($table);
diff --git a/tests/ObjectTest.php b/tests/ObjectTest.php
index b7927f586..bace066db 100755
--- a/tests/ObjectTest.php
+++ b/tests/ObjectTest.php
@@ -335,7 +335,21 @@ class ObjectTest extends SapphireTest {
 			array('ExtendTest(test)', 'ExtendTest2(modified)')
 		);
 	}
-	
+
+	public function testParseClassSpec() {
+		$this->assertEquals(
+			array('Versioned',array('Stage', 'Live')),
+			Object::parse_class_spec("Versioned('Stage','Live')")
+		);
+		$this->assertEquals(
+			array('Versioned',array('Stage,Live', 'Stage')),
+			Object::parse_class_spec("Versioned('Stage,Live','Stage')")
+		);
+		$this->assertEquals(
+			array('Versioned',array('Stage\'Stage,Live\'Live', 'Live')),
+			Object::parse_class_spec("Versioned('Stage\'Stage,Live\'Live','Live')")
+		);
+	}
 }
 
 /**#@+