PA-38 Tomahawk Drivers…

HGeorgeC*HGeorgeC*
in General Discussion

Hi All,

Quick question…asking for bunch of friends!

Whats up with the Upper Latch on the Tomahawk Doors??

For those who may not know, the Tomahawk has 2 Doors, Left and Right, both with a Individual Lower Closing Handle and then with a common Upper Latching System that hooks both doors closed, kinda like the hook we have at the top of the Cherokee door, only different.

This top Latch System can be problematic.

The Latch System consists of 2 Loops, 2 Hooks and an Interior and Exterior Handle to Latch & Unlatch the Doors. Sometimes the Loops move and fail to line up on the Hook and the Door(s) will not Latch Properly.

I do some of the minor A&P work for our Flying Club here and am often tightening down the lock nuts that hold the Loops in place. In talking with our IA he lamented “it’s just poorly designed”. That may be true as no other Piper product, that I know of, has used that door latching design…

So, question is, what do we do about it?? Is there a specific fix for this, or a better standard practice to both latch and unlatch these doors? Both our solo pilots and CFI’s are having problems, any expert help would be appreciated!

Thank You in Advance!

Stay Safe, Fly Fun!

George

N8434M PA-34 KLPR

Comments

  • MikeJJMikeJJ

    Are the parts the correct part numbers and the door and latch aligned per the Piper Service Manual? On the PA-28 series at least, I know the door must be properly aligned to the airframe BEFORE the latches can be aligned properly. Was the door ever replaced? Do both doors have the same issue? Any previous airframe damage history? How does the door seal fit?

  • HGeorgeC*HGeorgeC*

    Hi Mike,

    Thank You for your reply Sir!

    I think we got it figured out! We found a broken “Latch Hook Guide” in the Latch linkage for the Right Door. This Latch is very similar to the PA-28 Latch you mention, the one at the top of the door. On the Tomahawk it’s on the top of the fuselage and latches both doors. One of the Latch Guides was broken.

    So we changed it and it Ops Checks Good now!

    Thanks again for the input, all good stuff!

    Stay Safe, Fly Fun!

    George

    N8434M PA-34 KLPR

  • MikeJJMikeJJ

    Hopefully this will also make the aircraft more quiet and dry😬

    Regards,

    Mike

  • HGeorgeC*HGeorgeC*

    Thanks Mike!

    Yes Sir!

    Changed out this “Latch Hook Guide” IAW the IPB & MM and the Doors work good! Dry and Quiet! 🤙

    Thanks!

    George

    N8434M PA-34 KLPR

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