You can cheat and clear the waste in the handles on the second project with the drill press and then clean them up with the chisels and shinto unless you just like using the chisels. That's the way I do all of mine, clear it with the drill press as much as possible then refine with chisels or files.
Newb question. Were you doing the rips on the first project with the small boards on the band saw because it is safer than using the table saw? That paper products holder is terrific. There are lots of options there for customization and personalization. They're all good projects but that one was the most inspiring.
