Good pin method of alignment! Instead of tape, make yourself a wood depth stop to bottom out against, tape can bugger up and then the holes get deeper as you go.
Look up Fletcher Handcrafted Guitars and Drilling String Through Holes here on YT. That's where I learned this technique years ago. There are lots of videos on this as well.
I'm not meaning to answer for the video author, however I found a 12" drill press is the minimum. There are nice table top versions out there. The 12" will handle all your placements leaving routing much easier. Drill bits are cheaper 😆
I like your process better. Normally i step up each diameter. This seems more rational. Id say probably increases accuracy. Ill give it a try on my next set of teles. Thanks!!
