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capstan
capstan, a cylindrical barrel fitted in larger ships on the forecastle deck and used for heavy lifting work, particularly when working anchors and cables. It was normally placed on the centreline of the ship and was driven by auxiliary machinery. The barrel was lined vertically with whelps in order to provide a grip for hawsers or cables when they were being hove in. Below the barrel a series of pawls were attached which worked over a pawl-ring to prevent the capstan running back under a particularly heavy strain. In ships which were fitted with a capstan, two cable-holders were normally geared into the capstan engine so that the bower anchors could be weighed direct without their cables having to be led to the capstan barrel.
Before the advent of auxiliary machinery, the capstan was always found on the main deck of the ship and used both for weighing an anchor and for swaying up a yard (but see also jeers). There was a drumhead above the barrel with square pigeonholes into which wooden capstan bars, made of ash or hickory, were inserted to work the capstan by hand. The bars could be connected at the ends with a swifter to provide additional space for men to heave. In particularly heavy work a messenger was rigged in addition to the swifter so that yet more men could be used on the capstan. In most smaller ships the function of the capstan was taken by a windlass. The difference between the two lies mainly in the fact that the spindle on which the barrel of a capstan is mounted is vertical, while that on which the drum and gypsies of a windlass are mounted is horizontal. For illus. see also cable-holders; nipper. |
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Cite this article
"capstan." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "capstan." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-capstan.html "capstan." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-capstan.html |
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capstan
cap·stan / ˈkapstən/ • n. a revolving cylinder with a vertical axis used for winding a rope or cable, powered by a motor or pushed around by levers. ∎ the motor-driven spindle on a tape recorder that makes the tape travel past the head at constant speed. |
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Cite this article
"capstan." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "capstan." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-capstan.html "capstan." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-capstan.html |
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capstan
capstan The component of a tape transport that transmits motion (sometimes indirectly) to the magnetic tape and controls the speed of its motion past the head; the motion of the tape reels is usually separately controlled. Streaming tape transports often have no capstan.
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Cite this article
JOHN DAINTITH. "capstan." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN DAINTITH. "capstan." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-capstan.html JOHN DAINTITH. "capstan." A Dictionary of Computing. 2004. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O11-capstan.html |
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capstan
capstan ˈkæpstən n. a revolving cylinder with a vertical axis used for winding a rope or cable, powered by a motor or pushed around by levers.
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Cite this article
"capstan." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "capstan." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-capstan.html "capstan." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-capstan.html |
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capstan
capstan XIV. — Pr. cabestan, earlier cabestran, of unkn. orig.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "capstan." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 27 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "capstan." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 27, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-capstan.html T. F. HOAD. "capstan." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 27, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-capstan.html |
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