If you can just design around it, then go for it. There are "ease of access" benefits to not having the switches and wiring butted right to the wood. But the same goes for having them butted against anything else, so if you can't design around it, take a look at the Japanese-style buttons. Most of these have switches internal to the button housing, so extension past the body is nil. Being on the front of the panel, I'm assuming that they aren't for normal gameplay. In that case, you can use any attractive switch that fits. If you "think outside the box" a bit, you might find a different switch that fits and looks even better where you want to put it.
RandyT