Well,
I would recommend the Cougar. It took me some getting used to, but I think I have finally gotten close to the point I was at before the change of sticks. It has been about two months, but in that time I have gone from flopping around the sky like a newbie to getting more than a single kill in a sortie over the last week.
I do wish that the springs weren't quite so stiff as my wrist starts to get sore after awhile (I messed my wrist up about 4 months ago when I tripped and almost fell on my face
). Initially, the springs seemed to be a complete squeak to overcome, but I very much prefer it now. The other day, I was in Best Buy and was looking at getting a sterring wheel. I grabbed a MS Precision Pro 2 (what I used to use) and started moving it around. seemed very weak and toy like after the Cougar.
As far as it being fragile, I don't know if that is necessarily true (unless you drop it on a hardwood floor or throw it around the room). Some people have had problems with one of the switches on the throttle, but mine is fine. It hasn't shown any signs of wear and I use the switch all the time (I have the "up" view mapped to it).
As far as the CH setup, I have the pedals and that is it. The pedals are very nice and I would recommend them. The throttle and stick I have no idea about so I will let someone more informed fill you in on them.
-math
