It is Iron. Not the normal Ford part number, but 5750034. Also has 7AH on a casting tag. Thanks Rod
It would seem that the cast date tag would be for August 1957. This was in what is left of a 57 Fairlane, which would have been after the model year change. Is it at all possible for there to be afew carryover bodies this early in the 1958 model year and this may have been one of them. Thanks Rod
That manifold is not for an FE, it is MEL. MEL used a sheet metal valley cover.
That is not a MEL intake (383 430). MEL intakes do not have part of the valve cover gasket surface on the intake. It's 1958 Ford/T-Bird FE intake. Not sure if it was used on both 332 and 352 engines, or if it's early or late production. I would guess early.
I do agree with your statement about the valve cover surface, but there is still a quandry here. Which FE had a separate valley cover and an iron 4 bbl. manifold? We can see the gravel under the manifold in Rowdy's pictures. I recall the 427 Tunnel Port aluminum manifold having a valley cover that fastened to the manifold, but I can't think of another that used a valley cover. Did the very early FE use one?