Parts of a Crane Hook – Shank, Saddle, Throat, Latch

All 13 parts on the diagram

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The hook 7

Hook The curved forging that carries the load. It hangs from the block above it.
Shank The straight upper end of the hook. It goes up into the block.
Saddle Where the sling is meant to sit. Also called the bowl.
Throat opening The gap that a sling passes through to get onto the hook.
Latch It closes the throat opening. A slack sling then cannot slip off the hook.
Hook nut It holds the hook up in the block.
Thrust bearing Lets the hook turn while it carries the load. The nut rests on it.

The whole block 6

Sheaves The grooved wheels the rope runs round. A block can have one or several, side by side.
Wire rope The hoisting rope. It runs down, round a sheave and back up.
Side plates The steel plates on each side of the sheaves. They carry the center pin.
Cheek weights Steel plates bolted to the side plates to make the block heavier.
Center pin The shaft the sheaves turn on. It passes from one side plate to the other.
Dead end Where the end of the rope is made fast to the block.

How this list was compiled: Every name checked on 2026-09-30 and kept only where at least two independent sources use it. (1) A crane block maker's catalog and its warnings and use limitations sheet, archived copies https://web.archive.org/web/20110815083301/http://www.gunnebojohnson.com/wp-content/uploads/63516_craneblock.pdf and https://web.archive.org/web/20190214203002/http://www.gunnebojohnson.com/wp-content/uploads/craneblock-wul.pdf : hook, bowl or saddle, throat opening, hook latch, hook nut, sheaves, side plates, cheek weights, center pin, dead end connections. (2) A second maker's crane block catalog, archived copy https://web.archive.org/web/20040216143504/http://www.thecrosbygroup.com/2002edition/ASSETS/MetricPDF/M9_Mckissick_Blocks.pdf : shank hooks, swivel hook with thrust bearing, throat opening, latch, sheaves, side plates, cheek weights, center pin, dead end. (3) US Department of Energy standard DOE-STD-1090-2007, Hoisting and Rigging, full text at https://archive.org/details/manualzilla-id-5751313 : hook, shank, saddle of the hook, bowl, throat opening, latch, hook retaining nuts, hook bearing, sheaves, load block, dead end. (4) 29 CFR 1910.179, read at https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/29/1910.179 : the load block as the assembly of hook or shackle, swivel, bearing, sheaves, pins and frame suspended by the hoisting rope. (5) Bechtel Rigging Handbook, second edition, section 4.2 on blocks: side plates, center pin, cheek weight, thrust bearing, hook nut, sheaves, becket or dead end. (6) Wikipedia, Lifting hook, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lifting_hook : a safety latch, and pulley sheaves built into the hook block. Licence: own work

The drawing: Drawn for this site on 2026-09-30 from plain geometry; no maker's drawing, nothing traced. Licence: own work

How it works

A crane hook and the block it hangs from. The first drawing enlarges the hook and cuts open the housing above it. The second shows the whole hook block from the front, with a window drawn in the side plate so the sheave shows.

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The hook

The shank is the straight top end of the hook. It passes up into the block, where the hook nut holds it on a thrust bearing, so the hook can turn. The saddle is the bottom of the curve, where a sling sits. The throat opening is the gap at the mouth, and the latch closes it.

The block

The wire rope comes down, runs round a sheave and goes back up. The sheaves turn on the center pin, which is carried by the two side plates. Cheek weights are bolted to the side plates to make the block heavier. The dead end is where the end of the rope is fixed.

Saddle and bowl are two names for the same place on the hook.

Questions and answers

What are the parts of a crane hook called?

On the hook: the shank, the saddle, the throat opening and the latch, with the hook nut and thrust bearing at the top. On the block: the sheaves, the center pin, the side plates, the cheek weights and the dead end.

What is the saddle of a hook?

The bottom of the inside of the hook's curve, also called the bowl. It is where the sling is meant to sit.

What is the throat opening of a hook?

The gap at the mouth of the hook, which a sling passes through to reach the saddle. The latch closes it.

What is a hook block?

The whole assembly that hangs from the hoisting rope. The US workplace safety rule for overhead cranes calls it the load block: the hook or shackle, swivel, bearing, sheaves, pins and frame.