Hi All,
Thanks for all the responses, very much appreciated.
It seems some people do in fact set a little aft trim before take-off although I do agree it can be difficult to find the neutral point in the first place. One of our PA28s has a white marker, the other doesn't and I've been taught 6.5 turns forward from fully aft (with two SoB and full tanks).
I'll speak to my instructor next time we're out to get his thoughts too.
Cheers
Tim