The PA28: Which is the best of the bunch?

[Contacttower]

I was wondering the other day; which out of all the PA28s ever made was the best?

The gap between the original Cherokee with its roof mounted trim handle, plunger throttle and short, straight wings and the turbo Arrow IV for example is massive. I'd be interested to know which one people think constituted the overall "best" PA28.

[smarthawke]

Easy:

PA28-236 Dakota

[julian_storey]

In my view, the 'best' to fly have to be the later Arrows.

The most sensible to own however (unless you have deep pockets) is probably the Cherokee 235 as suggested by the chap above. It has a good turn of speed, will lift almost anything and doesn't come with the sometimes scary costs associated with retractable gear.

[waldopepper42]

Smarthawke:

You beat me to it!

Vote no. 2 for the Dakota. :)

[Cusco]

Arrow gets my vote too, despite all the cr*p written on another thread.........

But then a Dakota......................:rolleyes:

Cusco

[smarthawke]

I like the Dakota because of its performance and load carry capacity - and the lack of retractable gear (ie simple and cheap to maintain!).

Our club one operates out of anywhere a warrior will but climbs at the best part of 800fpm and cruises at 135kts IAS all with 4 real-sized adults, 271lts of fuel and baggage.

Okay it burns more fuel (55lts/hr unleaned) than an Arrow but it is quicker.

Only downside is a liking for carb ice but keep an eye on that and it can't be beaten!

[wsmempson]

I trained in a warrior II, did the wobbly prop conversion in the clubs' Dakota and have owned a cherokee 140, and archer II and now an Arrow III. The 140 was simple and good at what it did - and as my first a/c I adored it.

Out of all of them, the Arrow III flys the most sweetly and the quickest, for a reasonable fuel burn. But it is also more expensive to buy and maintain, so you pays your money and takes your choice!

For £15-20k, the Cherokee 140 takes a lot of beating, on a bang for buck basis.
:)

[gcolyer]

Yep 236-Dakota for me as well.

[Lister Noble]

I learned in a PA28-180.
What is that called,is it still a Cherokee?
Lister

[gcolyer]

The 180 is an Archer.

[wsmempson]

The early PA28 180 was called the "pathfinder", which was then re-named the "challenger", which finally became known as the "Archer". I'm not sure that many 180 hp Archers were built before the "hershey-bar" wing was replaced by the tapered wing - which then became known as the PA28-181....

[englishal]

Dakota without a doubt ;) Someone mentioned a STOL mod for it too a while ago......

Had they made a PA28-250RT then that may have won;)

[LysanderV8]

Not quite as modern as the Arrow, but I love my PA28-235 Cherokee Pathfinder, one of only 6 on the UK register. Like the Dakota, 55l/hour unleaned, but 46l/hour leaned and a great load carrier.

Lysander

[Saab Dastard]

The 180 is an Archer.
The early PA28 180 was called the "pathfinder", which was then re-named the "challenger", which finally became known as the "Archer".
According to Wikipedia (and confirmed from other sources), the early PA28-180 was simply called a Cherokee 180, from its introduction in 1962 until renamed the Challenger in 1973. There were significant changes to the model at this point - e.g. new engine, wingspan increased by over 2 feet. It was renamed again in 1974 to Cherokee Archer, and when the new wing was adopted in 1975 it became known simply as the PA28-181 Archer II.

The Pathfinder was never the name of the Cherokee 180 - it was the name for the PA28-235 after the short-lived name of "Charger", applied to the 235 from 1973-74.

I'm not sure that many 180 hp Archers were built before the "hershey-bar" wing was replaced by the tapered wing - which then became known as the PA28-181....
You are probably right - only about a year or so between the aeroplane being called the Archer (I) and the new wing being adopted. However, apart from the name, there is no real difference between the Challenger and the Archer 1, so there's really about 2 year's worth of production.

SD

[Shunter]

The PA28 I like is the one with 2 doors :E

[camlobe]

Just sat here chewing for a minute. Thought of the different PA 28's I have driven over the years. Hmm. -140 with 140 horses, 140D and 140E with 150 horses, -151, 161, 180E, R-180, R-200, RT201T. Yeh, that's about it.

My choice would be PA 28-180E. Proper four seater, or good load lugger with two up. No extra expense with a wobbly prop. No extra expense with dangling Dunlops. Keep it clean and get a true 130 kts and 8 gals per hour. Have been asked this question a number of times over the years and always gave this answer.

Oh, I just remembered, I even followed my own advice and bought one.

camlobe

[gcolyer]

130 kts in a 180? how steep a dive and for how long:eek:

[Final 3 Greens]

PA28-236 Dak.

Fast (for a PA28), no RG to pay for and will lift pretty much anything you can fit through the door.

Simple to fly, docile handling, good field performance.

An honourable second for the PA28-181 Archer.

Personally never saw the big attraction in the Arrow, although I have quite a few hours on them and nothing particularly bad to say about them, apart from I didn't like the automatic gear extension system and would disable it when flying.