Associations to the word «Capstan»

CAPSTAN, noun. (nautical) A vertical cleated drum or cylinder, revolving on an upright spindle, and surmounted by a drumhead with sockets for bars or levers. It is much used, especially on shipboard, for moving or raising heavy weights or exerting great power by traction upon a rope or cable, passing around the drum. It is operated either by steam power or by a number of men walking around the capstan, each pushing on the end of a lever fixed in its socket.

CAPSTAN, noun. (electronics) A rotating spindle used to move recording tape through the mechanism of a tape recorder.

CAPSTAN SCREW, noun. A type of screw commonly used to regulate the height of the action in a piano. The capstan screw is designed to be turned from the side, not the head, unlike an ordinary screw. A lever enters a hole in the side of the screw to turn it.

CAPSTAN SCREW, noun. (nautical) Mainly on sailboats, the mechanism for winding ropes under a lot of tension; a capstan.

CAPSTAN SCREWS, noun. Plural of capstan screw

CAPSTAN, noun. A windlass rotated in a horizontal plane around a vertical axis; used on ships for weighing anchor or raising heavy sails.