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Don't use a standard brad point bit for end grain. Fuller drill sells brad points with the spurs ground off for end grain drilling. Just tell them when you order.
Without looking it up, I think soft maple (and birch) is close to the same density/weight as YELLOW pine........which in turn is much denser and heavier than basswood or white/sugar pine. Wood density does vary widely from board to board, however. AYC is very consistent and close to YP but, though really nice, AYC is an expensive material (when you look at the bf cost) and noxious stuff to work with. Also a pain to get in most areas. Most needles are maple or birch.
I, too, started out with yellow pine, but switched quickly because of the same drilling issues you ran into. Most of what I build now is maple or white pine (some AYC). Changing wood in a plug, particularly a needle, is not that big a deal. Weigh an original that works, then find its balance point when rigged. Turn one out of alternate wood and seal it, figure out how much weight you need to add, then place that weight to make the new plug balance at the same point. You are probably better off doing this now rather than struggling to drill straight holes each time you build some. You will also learn a lot about what makes the plug work when you do it.
PS, if you use maple you have to account for time in the sealer. Soft maple in particular absorbs a lot of sealer and can add substantial weight to the plug.
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