It sounds as if it has been over-over-tightened and the result is that it is no longer possible to tighten it by human means, alone. :) The best thing I can tell you to do (without seeing pictures) is to take the stand apart, examine the tube to see if it has been "flattened" along the area where the pressure is applied. If so, then you must use some kind of mandrel to insert into the flattened tube and then re-shape it with a "soft" hammer -use a piece of wood for an anvil and take your time to hammer it back into a round shape.

Check the wing screw, itself, to see if an area of the thread has stripped.

HOWEVER....This is what I would do IF the stand is not easily repairable:

I would buy another one that is in better shape! They are still relatively inexpensive.

There are a couple other options that you could try in a pinch, though:

Go to the hardware store and get a hose clamp (like the kind your car's radiator hose utilizes -only smaller -Atlas hi-hat stands also use something similar to keep the upper tube from slipping) and tighten it around the upper tube of the snare stand so that it acts kind of like a memory lock. It won't allow the upper tube to slip down into the lower tube. It won't prevent the upper tube from "spinning" like a steering wheel, but it will prevent it from collapsing.

If you are a heavy hitter, it may be a better idea to use another type of snare stand.

Can you provide any pictures of the problem area? It's very possible I am missing something. Jumping2

Thanks for the comments and suggestions, O-Lugs. I have since looked at several eBay auctions for similar stands and noticed they all had a t-style handle to adjust the height. I have a 70's cymbal stand which has such a handle so I put it on ths snare stand and it works great. If I push down hard, the post will still move but I'd say that happens with all of these stands.

Steve