Capstan

Noun

 * 1)  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.
 * 2)  A rotating spindle used to move recording tape through the mechanism of a tape recorder.