Okay here're how it works: The plate is upside down on substrate. They burrow around the edge of the plate (I usually poke a starting hole with my finger). Then because the plate is huge compared to them, they will end up pushing substrate around to compensate. This leads to a cavity for a hide that is perfectly sized for them, with substrate and plate making the walls and ceiling.
The only reason the oversized hide works here is that it's not very tall, allowing security. A vertical oversized hide will diminish security.
In general, a hide that the snake can fill in fully is perfect, to the point that it's form fitting.
The drill is for holes in the plastic tub. The first paragraph is just an absolute basic setup without a rack, and not far off from a single tub rack. The initially listed tubs are determined by the the size of the snake (6 or 12 for a baby, 28 for a juvenile/small adult male, 40 for a very large male/adult female) and often when is used for a rack setup.
The second paragraph is actually in regards to your situation. Most people will tell you a large enclosure is a problem, honestly I've never had an issue with it, you just need very secure and tight hides for the snake to feel comfortable. But some people say, even with good hides, an oversized enclosure is a problem.
Anyway, I like the dinner plates and flower pot bases because they are heavy enough to generate a sense of security and don't have much height to them, making for a fairly snug hide on wood shavings. On newspaper you wouldn't be able to use an oversized hide with the same degree of success
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