So, after some playing around trying to figure out a preferred physical layout, I decided a Hillside 46 splayed keyboard would be about right. Thanks to Leo at Beekeeb for answering all my questions before ordering and during the build! Surface mount soldering was tricky, but everything works on the first try! I finally can use Dvorak with keycaps in the right place. Keymapping is a work in progress as I am getting used to this, and I am still trying to figure out how to get my Unicode characters to display in Linux (though for the Mac they show up fine). Now for lots of practice to build up new muscle memory, and develop a lighter touch so I don't keep inputting command characters unintentionally.
And thanks to Suraj Kurapati's own issues and config modifications (https://sunaku.github.io/home-row-mods.html) along with a lighter touch in my typing, typing is much cleaner now for me, with only very rare mods being inadvertently triggered. Very happy with how things are going. Now for a wireless version.