Definition of "tailstock" [tail•stock]

• The movable part of a lathe that supports the dead center. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Mounted on the end of the headstock facing the tailstock is the spindle and the spur center or for face turning such as bowls and plates, or other This is the tailstock, the crank on the end forces the cup center into the end of the workpiece."
• "This reduces the danger of splitting and, unimpeded by the tailstock, the hammer can be directed to the top, right-hand comer of the workpiece."
• "This serves to chuck short trunk pieces without using the tailstock centre."