I've been using my CH Yoke and pedals for many, many years, but I'm thinking about getting a somewhat higher quality joystick. I can't use the yoke comfortably on my small desk without seriously reorganizing stuff every time I want to fly. Also it's showing signs of age, with the yoke sticking pretty bad when pushing in and pulling back and the prop/mix sliders have been broken off once and glued back. I don't want to have a mid-flight prop lever emergency...I've accumulated a few of the cheaper sticks from Logitech, Saitek etc. over the years, but none feels good enough to be my new primary controller. Not to mention they usually only last for 6 months at most before they start drifting and the accuracy goes to pot (provided they even felt accurate to begin with, which is usually not the case). One of my biggest complaints with the cheaper sticks (aside from the poor build quality) is the short range of travel, making the controls too sensitive. So I don't want to buy another of the cheap, plastic joysticks, but I would prefer to spend less than €100 if possible.

I've accumulated a few of the cheaper sticks from Logitech, Saitek etc. over the years, but none feels good enough to be my new primary controller. Not to mention they usually only last for 6 months at most before they start drifting and the accuracy goes to pot (provided they even felt accurate to begin with, which is usually not the case). One of my biggest complaints with the cheaper sticks (aside from the poor build quality) is the short range of travel, making the controls too sensitive.

After giving my Microsoft joystick to the kid across the street, I got a cheap joystick so I would have something for helicopters and the F-18. I picked up the Logitech Extreme 3D Pro and find it very solid feeling despite being cheap. I don't have a problem with sensitivity in FSX with the control sensitivities set back, but find FS9 to be too sensitive with full realism.Since your CH yoke is so old, it might be a good time to take it apart and make it work better. I removed the plastic bushing where the tube passes thru the back of the case and replaced it with felt weatherstripping to eliminate the sticking elevator control. I havn't had a problem with "drifting" or accuracy on the joystick or the yoke.

The Extreme 3D Pro is actually among the cheap sticks I've owned. I agree about the feel, however after about three months of medium-heavy use, it started drifting, lose precision and wouldn't center properly. A search on the net revealed the I was far from the only one experiencing this. In fact, it seems to be an epidemic among 3D Pro joysticks - most of them start acting up after 1-6 months.My current stick is a Saitek Evo, which doesn't have any real problems (except for the cheap adjustment mechanism being broken). However the single-spring centering mechanism feels a bit odd and the stick lacks precision especially close to the center position.I'm looking at the X52 and X52 Pro. Especially the X52 Pro seems to get high marks in the feel and precision department:http://www.gamingnexus.com/Article/X-52-Pro/Item1354.aspxHowever it costs significantly more than my self-imposed €100 limit so I'm really not sure. You shouldn't have to pay €170 just to get a stick that doesn't fall apart after a few months. My C64 joysticks from the early 90's are still working... On the other hand it would be cheaper to buy one €170 stick than to keep buying several cheap sticks each year...

I've been using my CH Yoke and pedals for many, many years, but I'm thinking about getting a somewhat higher quality joystick. I can't use the yoke comfortably on my small desk without seriously reorganizing stuff every time I want to fly. Also it's showing signs of age, with the yoke sticking pretty bad when pushing in and pulling back and the prop/mix sliders have been broken off once and glued back. I don't want to have a mid-flight prop lever emergency.........

--------------------------Jimmi- here's a yoke strategy for a small desk- mount the keyboard on a sloping tray beside beside the yoke- thus leaving the conventional tray free to be loaded up with charts and approach plates. If you want to do some heavy duty typing, just lift the KB off and place it back on the lower tray- which slides out enough that the yoke does not have to be removed. The pic explains. Cost? About $2 for the (bent back) steel angle brackets that mount (on desk underside) a piece of scrap ply or plexi.If you decide to open your CH yoke, the other pic shows what you will find. This "surgery" was essential as the yoke was jammed- now 6 years later it still runs very smoothly. Turned out to be an incorrect factory assembly that eventually broke away a pot from its mount! Now I know what a disposal expert feels when disarming a new type of bomb!Alex ReidBaron 58 Holding KSFO R28R (R monitor now replaced with an LCD)