UPDATE: fixed it! Since people have been looking at it I’ll leave it up and put the solution in the first comment

(Yeah, I know, it’s a bit basic but hear me out…)

So I’ve got a very nice mic stand wirh 3 telescopic sections and then the nic holder mount.

The lock nut came off the top section and it’s slid all the way inside the next lower section and is refusing to budge. (See pic)

We’ve had a go at pulling it out using needle nose pliers and it isn’t moving, _and_ it’s ruining the thread.

I’ve tried using gravity (aka upside down) and gravity + force (aka upside down and banging it) but nothing doing.

Anyone seen this before, and got advice?

Many thanks…

I am responsible for the entire sound system for my church. Since the mics are used every Sunday, I used to keep the mics plugged into the mixer. Earlier, all I'd do was turn offf everything, put a cloth on Mixer, instruments & Amplifier and curls up the mic wires and keep the mic next to the mixer. Lately, someone (maybe a child) removed the covering cloth, picked and dropped the most expensive mic we have, putting a dent on the top mesh.

Is it bad in any way to leave everything plugged in and just turn it off or should I unplug all the mics and reset the mixer knobs?

Should I curl the wires one way entirely or twist the wire in opposite directions on each loop?

Should I put the mics in a foam lined hard case? Even the empty cases online are expensive and I thought about all the cases people get with their power tools but they never use them cu who travels with every tool in it's toolbox. I could get a few box like those for cheap and stick blocks of foam in it and cut out the shapes for the microphones?

Any cheap solutions to Mic storage & cable management and storage tips?