🔍 Key Concepts

• Shell plating strakes naming convention on a vessel's side and bottom • Relationship between the keel and the first few rows of bottom plating • Difference between sheer strake, bilge strake, and deck edge strake locations

💭 Think About

• Visualize a cross‑section of a ship from the very bottom (centerline) up the side to the deck edge; in what order would the strakes logically be named? • Ask yourself which structural element is usually used as the reference or starting point for lettering bottom and side strakes. • Think about where the sheer strake and deck edge strake are located vertically compared to where the lettering sequence would naturally begin.

✅ Before You Answer

• Identify which member is at or near the centerline on the bottom of the ship’s hull. • Confirm which strakes are located high on the side shell by the deck, as these are typically not the starting point for lettering. • Make sure you know that bilge strakes are located where the bottom turns up into the side, not at the very start of the sequence.