Help with I.D. of an Olds/Offy intake

I bought a 3-deuce Offenhauser intake at a swap meet, marked as '49-'56 Olds. After bead blasting it, I found a number stamped on the bottom, "5258". Google seems to think this a aftermarket version of the J-2 for '57-'58 only, that would be the 371. Is that true? Did I blow it?

 

Here's a link to the exeter auto supply offy catalog. Exeter is an alliance vendor.
www.exeterautosupply.com/Docs/Offenhauser%20catalog.pdf

It shows it as '57-'58 olds "big carbs" manifold.

 

Yep, # 5258 is for '57-'58 Olds & the large base Rochester 2GC carbs. The # for '54-'56 (Offenhauser) is 4060. This would bolt up to a '49-'53, but the intake ports are smaller on these earlier heads. My old '66 Offy catalog is at home...otherwise I'd give you a # for the earlier engine / heads. If you find any old Edelbrock Olds intakes, for: '49-'53 the # is OL-396, and for: '54-'56 it's # OL-396 'B'.

 

Well, another lesson in not doing business with someone you don't like. He got real hostile when I said it looked like a J-2, but I figured he knew his merchandise. If anyone wants this, watch E-bay.

 

Do I understand you right? It is the '54-'56 manifold that will "bolt up" to the '49-'53, not this manifold. I understood there is a slightly different angle to the intake surfaces of the heads on the '57-'58.

 

Right. '57-'58 manifolds are wider than '49-'56.

 

Thank you. That'll learn me.

 

T-faust, where are you from?? I've got a couple tripower intakes for 49-56 olds if you are looking for one. both of them are for three bolt carbs.

 

Yes. this is what I meant.

HEATHEN: "
Right. '57-'58 manifolds are wider than '49-'56".

I'm curious however about a boat engine I got a while back. As far as I can tell, the block is a '52 (303 ?) heads are #10 castings ('56 only?) but had a factory J-2 intake & 3-Rochester 2GC's on it...Is this possible? Would it all fit together?

 

Sure...all you'd have to do is figure out how much to mill off of the gasket surfaces (and at what angle), since '57-'58 intakes are too wide to start with. Going the other way, I once bought a '49-'56 style Offenhauser dual quad intake off a guy's garage wall, and as I was leaving with it, he called after me, "Wait, these go with it". He came out and handed me a pair of homemade steel spacers that someone had made to bolt it on a later, taller deck Olds.