Here’s good news for foredeck crews who have to deal with hectic sail changes and less-than-ideal sheeting angles. Harken’s new high-load snatch blocks feature an innovative soft-strop attachment system that makes life easy. The blocks currently come in four sizes (safe working loads of 5,070 pounds, 10,805 pounds, 18,080, and 26,460 pounds), and should work well in such static-line applications as rigging a barber hauler, mast-base halyard leads, tack-line leads, and so forth. The block has anodized-aluminum side plates that pivot around the sheave, which has a Teflon-impregnated ultra-light composite bearing and Torlon ball bearings to carry thrust loads. The soft-strop attachment is made from cordage with a Spectra jacket and a Dyneema core. Prices range from $250 to $1,300, model depending. Harken, 262-691-3320, www.harken.com.
