I was wondering if anybody knows what is a good brand of joystick that will last at least five years without going bonkers.  I have the Wingman Force 3d from Logitec and have owned it for about 1.5 years and I can't keep a plane steady with it.  I keep crashing.  It jumps all over the place.

What make and model of a joystick should I get?  Any ideas on how to fix this one?

Thanks

Allright, Hyperion already warned you I see 
As an owner of the Thrustmaster HOTAS Cougar I can comfortably say that it's a marvelous joystick with LOADS of capabilities

Here's good site which lists some functions
http://www.flightsimcentral.com/thrushotcoug.html

And Hyperion, let's smoke the peace pipe, I dont want to have another

I've been using a Microsoft Sidewinder Force Feedback 2 for about a year now, and I can honestly say its the best joystick I've ever owned.  Of course, the last time I bought one was back in 1999, long before FF was any good.

I use the M$ force feedback2 and have had zero problems with it. It is a great joystick IMO.

I would reccomend looking at the Saitek X-45 though, everything i have read about it has been good and I am really thinking about switching to it myself.

good hunting

I use a MS Sidewinder ForceFeedback2. It works fine, no problems whatsoever. I find the throttle control very fiddly though. The lever is very short so small adjustments are near impossible. This can be annoying - to the extend that I am considering switching to something else.

Cheers
AJ

I also have a yoke and pedals cobo (CH Products Pro Pedals, CH Products Flight Sim Yoke), which is probably the best flight sim control system I have ever heard of.  Has throttle, mixture and prop pitch controls, as well as a hat, trim controls, gear and flaps, plus four other buttons.  The pedals are great!  I have rudder control on my M$ Force Feedback 2, but I have disabled it because the pedals do the real thing justice.

However, it is an expensive setup.  The pedals are about $100 US, and the yoke runs about $110-150, depending on where you get it.

A little less than the Cougar, and well worth the money.  If you are into the realism of flying, deffinitely give this a look.

The black one, and you're right: it does have a large number of functions.  Great for flying those big birds.  Not so much use of the dern mouse!

I use the wingman attack 2 stick and have had good results. as for one that lasts for 5 years,I know of none that can take that kind of abuse(especially the way I fly) I have tried many, and this is the smoothest i know of. I'll trade a heavy duty 5 year stick for a short lived smooth digital like the wingman attack2 any day!  good luck and happy flying.