That piece you have pictured is part of the PCV valve system on the early sixties Y powered vehicles.  Here are some pictures that should help to clarify how those systems were originally hooked up on a 1963 Ford pickup. 
 
 

Lorena, Texas (South of Waco)

Isn't the piece shown in the picture half of the pcv system used on yblock trucks in the early 60's? All he would need is the rest of it (tube, pcv valve & carb plate) to complete his crankcase breather. Then again good luck finding those pieces.

Dan      Kingman Az.      86409

Jamie;
Paul is correct in his description of the breather tube you have on your motor. The actual "Road Draft Tubes" were phased-out in 1957. 1956 and earlier Y Blocks had the "Road Draft Tube" on the driver's side of the block near the front of the motor. They had a canister attached to the top of the tube with a filter inside. I think the concept was that as you moved down the highway, wind passing across the open portion of tube would create a lower pressure inside the tube and help the crankcase breathe better. It really never worked that well, so Ford developed the valley pan with the breather tube in the rear which most guys convert to a PCV system

Rono

  Ron Lane,  Meridian, ID

It's the draft tube/crankcase breather.  The only other air entering the block is thru your oil filler cap filter. Often that is plugged with dirt & old oil residue. It's important to ensure that the filter material in the cap is clean (failing that replace it) or the crankcase will not have circulation, leading to sludge build up.  The best alternative is to install a PCV setup. There are a couple of way to do that, which are explained elsewhere on this site, if you want to do a search..  


Paul

I apologize for posting again. I'm sure i'm beginning to get on some peoples nerves now but I cant seem to find all the information i need by searching or googling.

On engine strip down, my valley cover has a fitting on the rear of it, and a rubber tube that runs down to the back of the block.  

I beleive like this  

I take it this is whats known as a road draft tube? what is it purpose? Is it a breathing system? I see no other similar devices on my engine from the crank case etc. Is this sufficient? Should there be any others?

Is it worth fitting any other breathers anywhere such as the valve covers?

Regards,

Jamie