Moin!
Yep. Fiddi's idea is pretty much what I also think would work, just put some durable friction material between the handles and tighten them in the axle.
on the other hand, if one uses slide potentiometers, by doing Norbert's idea you can just attach control linkages from the damper link to the pots as well. Both mechanisms probably work great.
I am from Finland, doing a GA cockpit trainer here, here's a small pic:
It has a 15" CRT inside when assembled, uses FSBUS for the interface. The console started as an tabletop cockpit idea, but I soon realized it was just too big, I wouldnt be able to see the outside visual behind it, so I had to build a base for it from MDF. Still need to do pedals and yoke, the throttle will be cessna-like for starters, might add a king-air type one later.. I guess these are never "finished" but I want to make the cessna version ready and fly with it for a while before adding anything else..
Tuomas