Principles should be universal to be useful. However, for very simple tasks, many principles would be overkill.

For example, I may have 12 "principles" for managing any project:

1) State my goals as specific outcomes
2) Make sure goals are understood and committed to by everyone
3) Make sure leadership towards the goal is shared
4) Make sure resources are adequate and used optimally
5) Make sure everyone knows their roles
6) Make sure decisions are based on best information and expertise
7) Make sure there is trust & openness in communication & relationships
Make sure conflict is approached openly & constructively
9) Make sure the needs of everyone have been met
10) Make sure work is organized to accomplish the goals
11) Make sure processes are modeled and rehearsed first
12) Make sure work & communication processes are optimized

If my project was "stage the olympics" this list might be too small.
If my project was "Organize the annual company Christmas party" this list might be OK.
If my project was "Use the bathroom" this list would be overkill.

However, the "principles" still apply to all three examples. Some of them become redundant when no one else is involved in the project. Some of them become inadequate when the project is huge.

Because they are principles they are useful to know and apply. Look at them as a checklist.

Try it with your "mass spectrometer" project and see if your project has a higher quality after applying the checklist.