Too often when it comes to customizing a classic truck, builders make changes just for the sake of making changes. In many cases, the best modifications are the ones that you need to look for, not the ones that slap you in the face. When it came time to design a dash for my '68 Chevy pickup, I wanted something that was custom but still retained much of the stock flavor that would be incorporated into the rest of the buildup.
There are several aftermarket bezels available to suit most people's taste, but I decided I wanted to keep the stock chrome and black plastic bezel. Also, I wanted something different than the stock gauges. I have always liked the look of the Auto Meter gauges, and with the two large 4 3/4-inch holes in the stock bezel, I figured they would fill the need well. When I saw the Carbon Fiber Series in their catalog, I knew I had just what I was looking for.
I had a couple of ideas on how to mount the new gauges, but they required two different size gauges. The 2 1/8-inch openings for the four gauges that run along the bottom of the bezel would work with a set of 2-inch gauges mounted from the front. But, I also wanted to see if I could show more of the stock chrome bezel by mounting some 2 5/8-inch gauges from the rear. Luckily, Auto Meter indulged me and supplied me with both sizes so I could try both methods. Once everything arrived, I headed over to the Primedia Tech Center with a box full of gauges and a new dash bezel from Classic Industries and started putting my ideas to work. We tried three different methods, all of which look good. As you'll see, we had to make a separate panel to mount the gauges. It turned out to be a little easier than I had thought it would be. The hardest part was making sure that the gauges lined up perfectly once the stock bezel was put in place.
Take a look at our three options, and hopefully one of them will inspire you in some way.
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 It wouldn't matter how good...  It wouldn't matter how good the gauges looked if we scratched up our new dash bezel from Classic Industries. To keep it safe, we put some duct tape around the edge to protect the plastic chrome finish while we were working on it. |
 Since we weren't going to...  Since we weren't going to be using any of the original circuit board, we cut off most of the raised portion from the backside of the bezel that the circuit board attached to. |
 In order to mount the gauges...  In order to mount the gauges from the backside of the bezel, we needed to make another panel for the gauges to mount to and behind the stock bezel. We cut a piece of black ABS plastic the approximate size of the bezel. We used an old custom door panel with a slight texture, but any stiff piece of plastic or piece of aluminum or mild steel would work. We held it in place against the backside of the bezel and used a white grease pencil to mark each gauge hole. |
 Using a drill press with an...  Using a drill press with an adjustable hole-cutting tool, we found the center of the holes by placing the drill bit close to the center and spinning the cutting tool until it was even with the circumference of the circle. |
 Once we found center, we clamped...  Once we found center, we clamped the plastic to the drill press table with a piece of wood under it to avoid damaging the cutting blade on the metal table. The two large gauges required 4 5/8-inch holes, and the four gauges along the bottom required 2 5/8-inch holes. |
 We sanded the edges of the...  We sanded the edges of the holes to de-burr them, and then slipped the Auto Meter gauges through the front and clamped them in place using the supplied brackets and fasteners. |
 The factory tach hole is 3...  The factory tach hole is 3 1/2 inches, which doesn't fit any standard Auto Meter gauge. So we decided to mount a 2-inch oil pressure gauge there along with a 5/16-inch light from Painless Performance for the high-beam indicator. The only problem we had was that the plastic panel didn't fit flush against the gauge opening. We faced the same problem for the new turn-signal indicators and the dash openings. We fixed this by cutting another smaller panel to house this gauge and the pair of 5/16-inch turn-signal indicators. |
 The smaller panel was bolted...  The smaller panel was bolted to the other panel and spaced out 3/8 inches (the width of two 5/16-inch nuts). |
 With the two panels bolted...  With the two panels bolted together, we drilled out the marked holes for the gauges and lights so that both panels would line up. The 5/16-inch lights are a press-in fit, and stay in place once pushed in. We used green for the turn-signal indicators and blue for the high beams. |
 Because the center gauge is...  Because the center gauge is now spaced out some, we had to trim its mounting bracket about 3/8 inch to get it to work. |
 Here's the panel with the...  Here's the panel with the Auto Meter 5-inch speedo and tach, the 2 5/ 8-inch lower gauges, and the 2-inch center gauge. It's ready to be placed behind the factory bezel. |
 And here it is with the factory...  And here it is with the factory bezel in place. |
 You can see here how well...  You can see here how well the 2 5/8-inch lower gauges blend in with the stock bezel. |
 As is the case with so many...  As is the case with so many things we do when custom building a truck, once we had everything assembled, we noticed that we had some more room for the turn-signal lights and maybe the center gauge. We'll probably get some 1/2-inch lights for the turn signals to fill the holes a little better, and maybe get a 2 5/8-inch gauge and 1/8-inch LED for the high-beam indicator to better fill the center opening. |
 Here's how a 2 5/8-inch gauge...  Here's how a 2 5/8-inch gauge will look in the opening. |
 Just in case you don't want...  Just in case you don't want to go to all this work, we decided to see just how easy it would be to mount the gauges through the front of the stock bezel. We replaced the lower four gauges with 2-inch gauges that slipped right into the holes with no modification. The center gauge and indicator lights still require a small panel to mount them. |
 All the gauges were secured...  All the gauges were secured using the supplied brackets. |
 And for another option, we...  And for another option, we left the four lower 2-inch gauges and mounted the 5-inch speedo and tach from behind using our custom panel. We definitely like this method better for the speedo and tach, but haven't made up our minds on the lower four--as both ways look good. This way looks more consistent because you can see the machined Auto Meter bezel on each gauge, but the 2 5/8-inch gauges are larger and a little easier to read. You'll have to decide for yourself. |
 If you really want to take...  If you really want to take the easy route, here's another option we just ran across. RB's Obsolete (800/426-6607) is now offering this cluster filled with Classic Instruments gauges, including a custom clock for the center hole built exclusively for RB's. |