stuffing box

Noun

stuffing box (plural stuffing boxes)

1. An assembly containing a seal, or sealing material, around a shaft.
   • ; the lower diaphragm forms a surface to be pressed upon by the column of water above the tap, which pressure by means of the upright spindle connecting it with d, pulls down the upper diaphragm, and forms a perfect valve and stuffing box, whereby the escape of the liquid is entirely prevented.1847, editorial staff, “Improvement in Water Taps, Cister Valves, &c. ”, in Scientific American, series 1, Volume 3, Issue 9, page 68
   • Packing in the stuffing-boxes, through which the piston-rods pass at the end of the cylinder, and so arranged to keep the cylinders steam-tight, at times become loose or displaced, and in such conditions steam may pass with considerable violence out of the cylinder by way of the stuffing-box...1943 September and October, “The Why and the Wherefore: Locomotive Cylinder Drain Cocks”, in Railway Magazine, page 319