![]() ![]() Two barrels on a common axle were used frequently to allow men on two decks to apply force to the bars. The ropes were always wound in a clockwise direction (seen from above).Ĭapstans evolved to consist of a wooden drum or barrel mounted on an iron axle. A rudimentary ratchet was provided to hold the tension. A rope wrapped several turns around the drum was thus hauled upon. Levers, known as bars, were inserted through holes at the top of the timber and used to turn the capstan. In its earliest form, the capstan consisted of a timber mounted vertically through a vessel's structure which was free to rotate. On-board the museum sailing ship Balclutha The capstan and the anchor windlass on the deck below that it drives. In Japan it is called Kagura-san(神楽桟),used to carry stones. Both device and word are considered Spanish inventions. The word, connected with the Old French capestan or cabestan(t), from Old Provençal cabestan, from capestre "pulley cord," from Latin capistrum, -a halter, from capere, to take hold of, seems to have come into English (14th century) from Portuguese or Spanish shipmen at the time of the Crusades. The principle is similar to that of the windlass, which has a horizontal axle. The tensioned portion of the rope would hoist a foresail and could also be used to lift a heavy spar into position on the mast or to transfer cargo to or from a dock or lighter.Ī capstan is a vertical- axled rotating machine developed for use on sailing ships to multiply the pulling force of seamen when hauling ropes, cables, and hawsers. Sailors would coordinate the rhythm of their movements by singing a particular type of sea shanty as they walked around the capstan. ![]()
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