Ditto Petek's suggestion.
The CR instrument layout is perhaps the worst place to put gauges because you can't see them while you're driving.
Here is another example of originality vs practicality. I wanted clearly visible gauges using peripheral vision without taking my eyes off the road. And I wanted the priority of observation relative to priority of importance of the information when I needed it. In the following order of decreasing priority is; speedo, tach,
oil pressure, water temp, volts, and fuel level.
Another issue is originality vs reliability. Smiths gauges have the worst reputation for reliability, and Autometers, the best.
Used Autometer Sport Comp 5" speedo (160MPH), & tach (8,000 RPM). "Z" Series
oil, temp, volts, fuel. Looks factory, but nowhere close to original.
And they didn't come without teething problems. Speedo has 1/8" pin drive on one end, 3/16" on the other. Had to make a pin. Faulty fuel sender blew out fuel gauge. Had to replace both.
But I can see 'em! Another issue I had was switches in normal locations and configurations. Lights and wipers on the left, keyswitch and accessories on the right. About the only thing I was fanatical about was having a Ford ignition switch that used a Ford key, rather than a generic forklift, backhoe, or boat key, or bona fide Lucas (MGB) with what looked like a suitcase lock key. '70 Ford F150 worked fine.
Send me your e-mail and I'll send you shots of the dash as I configured it. Might give you food for thought. You don't have to do it like "Ol Shel" did it, if it doen't make sense.