🔍 Key Concepts

• Parts of a block: shell, sheave, becket, hook, and how lines are reeved through them • Purpose of an opening side plate so a line can be laid into the block without reeving the end through • Differences in common block names: snatch block, heel block, gin block

💭 Think About

• Think about situations where you need to rig a block onto a line that is already under tension and you cannot reeve the bitter end through the sheave. • Which specific type of block is designed with a side plate or end that opens to allow a bight of line to be placed around the sheave quickly? • For each option, ask yourself: is this a general descriptive name, or is it the established seamanship term used in rigging textbooks and on USCG exams?

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure the term you choose is one you’ve seen associated with quick rigging to an existing line. • Eliminate any options that are more commonly related to position on a structure (like at the heel of a spar or mast) rather than how the block opens. • Verify that the correct term refers specifically to an opening feature at or near the hook/shackle end to admit a bight of line.