For long sequences of 9's, with a bit of math you don't need to pull the handle at all, you can do the problem in your head, e.g...

999 * 999 = (1000 - 1) * (1000 - 1) = 1000² - 2*1000 +1 = 1,000,000 - 2000 +1 = 998,000 + 1 = 998,001