Why is it "harder":
- faster
- more ground effect
- less powerfull flaps => correcting a messed up approach is more difficult
- P28A is in general a little more "sluggish" than a C152 (personal opinion, not a fact)
I have to reply to this comment, both for the benefit of the poster and any other newbies reading it.
The four bullet points in the quote above do not make an aircraft 'harder' to fly, apart from possibly the last.
- faster, we are talking about an 'over the fence' speed of 63kias at gross, not a hot ship and so long as one has been trained properly and respects the vspeeds, very gentle speed
- more ground effect, sure, but this does not make the aircraft any 'harder' to fly, it is just a characteristic to allow for; the 152 tends to 'pendulum' in strong crosswinds, but that is just another characteristic. Just land the PA28 at the correct speed and you will not float
-less powerful flaps. you should not need to correct a messed up approach with flap, if it is that bad go around and get stabilised next time. If necessary (e.g. engine out), the PA28 will slip very easily and lose height rapidly, but I am mindful of the stress on the vertical stabiliser in normal operations
- more sluggish. Depends on weight and one's technique, I have had 650fpm climb out of a PA28 at max.