I modeled it trying to keep a balance between lo-poly, software compatibility and realism. I frequently my models by drawing them in Solidworks and the importing them into Blender for textures and rendering. I did model the gauge in Solidworks, but I started from a blank slate when I went to Blender. This eliminates the need for re-topologizing. I have tried many conversion schemes from Solidworks to Blenders and all end up with triangulated meshes. Even if the mesh is converted to quads, the Blender face rings end up all screwy. So sometimes starting from scratch is the shortest route.
Simmer3D 