273 4 bbl sheet metal plate underside of intake manifold

Bob Jasinski said

Rusty, As far as I have been able to determine, this part serves a purpose, that is to shield the hot underside of the intake manifold exhaust port from oil directly splashing onto it by the lifters, burning the oil and turning it into coke to then fall off onto the lifters. Please enlighten me as to why I would not want to replace this factory part.

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Oh I know exactly what its purpose is. So did Chrysler. But they, along with everybody else, eliminated them because they were catching and cooking oil, more than they were insulating the bottom of the intake.

There are plenty of heat paints on the market that would do just as good if not better job of that piece of metal. Red Glyptal comes to mind. It also has fantastic oil drain properties that aids in oil runoff.

As for "enlightening" you on why you wouldn't want to replace that shield, I cannot do that. That's not my job. You seem dead set on it anyway, so have at it. I know I wouldn't want anything at all that could catch and hold oil until it turns to cooked sludge and possibly fall into my engine later. There are tons of modern carburetor insulator gaskets that will do a far better job of keeping the carburetor cool, than that shield ever did.

Just because car makers did something, doesn't mean it was always a good idea. They evolved just like the rest of us. Good luck with whatever you decide.