there's no such thing as a lost cause.

I know what you mean. I had a really subborn stip in that inlay that took lots of wedges to comply, enough so that I split the deck. After that little repair I learned to work around a band clamp holding everything in shape.

: I don't think I'll be afraid when I finally get to the inlay work. I'll just
: make sure I've had a glass of wine before I start the work: my hands will
: be steadier.

For really tight curves a steady hand and a sharp razor are your best bet. A little patience helps too.

: The one question I have now is what species of wood will give me the best
: coloration for my inlay work. I need a red that matches the Canadian Maple
: Leaf and a blue that matches the Quebec Fleur-de-lis.

Red shouldn't be too tough, but blue? only thing that comes to mind would be spalted maple (have fun cutting out all the black streaks) or white pine with a serious case of blue stain (you can see a bit on the fore deck, actually had a matching strip for the other side but B&C'd it backwards, Doh!), neither one will sand off when fairing in your design.

Sound cool, good luck!
Tom