I use a Saitek Cyborg 3D Gold that I got in the sales a number of years ago & it works for me, but would like some pedals eventually.

CH
 

another vote for CH


I got a cheap joystick but the durability ran out and I already liked IL-2 so much I got a whole CH set up.


Get $24 joystick. If you really get into IL-2, get a HOTAS and pedals set up.

if you want a cheap good joystick you can get a "Logitech Extreme 3D Pro" the price range is well within what you're looking for, it's a very solid joystick with confortable layout. I'm using it at the moment until I can afford a complete set of HOTAS and pedals.

Logitech Extreme 3D Pro
 

I am also using a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro, and can recommend it as a starter joystick.

It features, aside from the primary two axises and fire trigger, Twist-stick Rudder, a Throttle Lever, 8-directional POV-hat, 5 thumb buttons on the stick and 6 buttons on the base. It costs about 350SEK here, which equals 54 Canadian Dollars.
Its electronics are not as durable as a more expensive joystick, as mine started giving somewhat mildly unstable signals around the center-regions after about 12 months of heavy usage. This can however be negated by using a little bit of dead-band.

Some other side notes; After you've acquired any joystick, you should do two things.
1.) From the Main Menu in IL2, go to Hardware and then Input and select Yaw from the drop-down menu. That is by default configured to a profile with all sliders set to 100. Drag the sliders (or enter the numbers in the boxes) until it's set to 10-20-30-40-...-100. This will make the Rudder less sensitive to input near the center, and will make landings and take-offs less dangerously sensitive/twitchy.
2.) Download the program "Joy To Key" from here and use it to configure your POV-hat inputs to simulate mouse movement. This will enable you to use your POV-hat to pan and scan smoothly across the horizon, instead of IL2's default ≈30° snap locks. (Don't forget to unbind the POV-inputs from the "views" and "snap view" sections of IL2's Control Settings.)

Saitek Aviator is good "all in one" joystick, with bonus of 5th axis and four (on)-of-(on) switchs, whit mode selector. And have better potentiometers than Logitech 3D PRO.

Sokol1

Get yourselft a Microsoft Sidewinder Precision 2 at eBay. It is the best joystick for its price.

Does anyone know how to do this? I only see pitch and roll, yaw would be magnificent because the rudder pedals I have are giving me glitched input that could be cut out with a small dead zone.

If you can find a download link for a program called il2 Joy Control I'm pretty sure that will do it.

+1

For a quick, cheap and decent stick, the Aviator is just fine (and better than the Logitech offering).

I had a CH analogue Flightstick Pro and Pedals for over a decade until I went USB, still as sharp as the day I got them when sold.

No question where my money went after that.

No doubt it costs a bit but if you're committed to simming, they'll last and last.

Cheers, Spinner