So, now that everyone knows I that I have a new hobby, my family is buying all sorts of cake stuff--well, my aunt found this set of icing tubes at a yard sale, one big and one small, with coppers lids and the screw-in plunger. They came with some tips, and some round plates with cut out images but I'm not sure how to use them, or if I should even try. Anyone have any experience with these? Do they work well, or is it just a more difficult verson of a piping bag?

The big one is a cookie press. It works great. I actually have three of them, because they're hard to find, so I buy them whenever I see one at the thrift store. The cut out plates fit in that one. Spritz cookie recipes are what you usually use in a cookie press.

The smaller tube for icing isn't going to make you happy. You can't control the amount of pressure like you would a piping bag.

What's a spritz cookie?

Cookies made from soft dough that you press out of a cookie press. Here's a recipe link on Wilton's website you can use, and you can look at their new fancy cookie press (link at the bottom of the page) to see what it is really.

http://www.wilton.com/recipe/Spritz-Cookies

A Spritz cookie is a German butter cookie that you use with a cookie press like the one you have. You make the dough and then put it in your tube, pick a pattern and place that on the bottom and secure. Then twist the top and a shaped cookie will come out. Put these on an ungeased cookie sheet. Here's the recipe I use: 1c butter, 3/4 c sugar, 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla (or any flavoe you like) 2 3/4 c sifted all purpose flour. Cream butter until soft, add sugar gradually & beat for 5 minutes until light & fluffy. Add eggs, vanilla & beat well. Add flour in 3 additions beating after each add. DO not over beat. You could also add the flour by hand. Dough will be stiff. Refridgerate 1 hour. Bake 7-10 min. at 400 dg until light brown around es=dges. Do not overbake. Makes 6-7 dozen. Good Luck!
Let me know how they come out. I use cherry extract & make heart shapes for weddings.

Tell your family to hold off on the cake deco. supplies though they mean well. You could end up with a lot of stuff you'll never use or very poor grade equipment that will make the job you are doing fail. You will blame yourself and down the road find it was the equipment.
Experience talking here.

Thanks for the replies. The images are so small on the plates it's hard to imagine a cookie coming out of them.

Most of the things I've been getting from family are tips and cutters. This is the only thing they've given me that made me scratch my head.