Q&A for How to Use a Cookie Press

Grab the barrel and turn clockwise (to the right), at the same time grab the white section of the gun part and turn to the left. This will separate the barrel from the press.

Yes, you should refrigerate your dough overnight, and then take it out of the refrigerator and put it in the cookie press right away.

You should hand-wash it. The dishwasher will not clean it thoroughly.

That is the idea, but it doesn't always work that way. I went to a twist instead of a trigger because of the control.

Yes, you can. I have had 3 different presses, and my favorite is the metal one that I crank. It has a disc with a small star (about 1/2 inch across) that looks more like what came out of our play-doh machines and would totally work for cheese straws. Since we were having problems with the cookies pulling away and sticking to the pan, I ran lines of these stars and we wound them up into flowers.

According to my Pampered Chef model, the number faces out. This is the way I use it and it works fine.

There should be a button or lever that you can push to release the ratchet.

Unfortunately, that is not possible. Try using different heads for different sized cookies.