Right. Many european mic stands apparently have 3/8"-16 threads at the top, instead of the US "standard" ultrafine 5/8"-27 threading. Yup: 3/8"-16 UNC. Farmer-bolt coarse threads. Why it's not 10mmx1 (or some wierdball Whitworth threading to please the BBC) is *completely*beyond me. Anyway, a lot of European-sourced mics therefore have those screw-in inserts in the mounts to allow them to work in either Euro or US venues.
Don't ask me why the Euro stands have inch threadings. It's a complete puzzlement. So is the 5/8"-27 thing: don't get me started on _that. At least they aren't tapered, like pipe threads, which are the only other place that 27-threads-per-inch are found in nature...
I have like 50 of those inserts. The ones you want are the nice Neumann ones that are extra-long and have the knurling at the base so you can remove them without using a butter knife (or a dime). I carry 4 of those in my toolbox, just in case I ever find myself doing live sound in a venue that has those Euro stands. I've been carrying them since 1977, and I've _still_ never seen one of those stands in the US. AKG supposedly sells them here, but you couldn't prove it by me...
