Piper Archer III nosewheel centering

[Peter Koenen]

My new flight instructor told me that the nosewheel on the Piper Archer III we are flying does not turn in flight along with the rudder. I was skeptical of that and after searching around I have found many posts on the web indicating that the fixed gear Pipers do not have nosewheel centering blocks/cams like the Cessnas do - so the nosewheel turns in flight along with the rudder. I had a close look at both the POH and the Maintenance/Repair manual for the Archer III and there is no indication either way. While I do believe everybody in these posts, I was wondering if anyone knows where this is written down in some sort of official document (Piper document, official manual, etc.) so I can show my instructor. I believe my instructor did most of his training in Cessnas so I think he is just assuming the Piper is the same way.

Trust but verify...Anybody have anything I can show as objective evidence? Regardless, please do verify that I am correct based on your actual experience.

Thanks!

 

[dmspilot]

Instructor is mistaken.

 

[steingar]

Nose wheel turned on my Cherokee, which is basically a devalued Archer. Really bad advice from the CFI, since you have to neutralize the rudders upon landing or the aircraft tries to divert into the weeds. Not the first bit of CFI miswisdom, and I doubt it'll be the last. Give someone the rating and they think they know everything. Then again, I didn't even need a CFI rating to think I know everything.

 

[simtech]

Easy enough...go out on a cross wind day and don't center the rudder before the nose wheel touches down and see what happens.

 

[ateamer]

Ask the A&P to pull the cowl and show you the nosegear strut and steering system. He’ll be able to show you definitely if there is or isn’t, plus you’ll know the plane better. I don’t remember a mechanic ever being unwilling to show me some details about the plane and educate.

 

[Bell206]

I had a close look at both the POH and the Maintenance/Repair manual for the Archer III and there is no indication either way.

Don't know which MM you looked in, but in manual P/N: 761 679 it shows the nose gear connected to the rudder pedal torque tube and gives rigging instructions to verify rudder pedal deflection vs nose wheel deflection. Plus it mentions this in the basic system description in both the MM and POH. So perhaps this isn't the answer you are looking for.

 

[Peter Koenen]

Bell206:

Thanks for looking at that and providing those excerpts. But I am not sure that proves that the nosewheel assembly doesn't have the centering cam like the Cessna reportedly does.

Have any of the A&Ps with nosewheel assembly/maintenance experience seen the Cessna centering cam/block, and the absence of such features in the Archer assembly?

I plan to seek out the A&P that services our flight school planes and see what he knows - great advice!

 

[Bell206]

But I am not sure that proves that the nosewheel assembly doesn't have the centering cam

As an AP, to the best of my knowledge no centering cams on Archers. But don't know what that has to do with your initial question on the nose wheel following the rudder. That is the reason you must ensure the rudder is rigged and that the rudder and nose wheel deflections are sync'd as shown in the table above. Or perhaps I'm still missing your point?

 

[Peter Koenen]

My point: My instructor told me the Piper nosewheel does not rotate/steer in flight in response to rudder pedal actuation. As I understand it, the centering cam/block is what locks the rotation of the Cessna (and other types) nosewheel after lift-off and full nose strut extension. With the cam/block engaged in flight, the nosewheel remains locked straight and on center no matter what the rudder pedals are doing. So if the Piper nosewheel strut assembly is without that centering cam/block mechanism then the nosewheel rotates along with the rudder in response to pedal actuation - nothing stopping it from happening.

 

[Greg Bockelman]

I can say with certainty that your instructor is wrong. The nose wheel follows rudder pedal inputs. It is nothing like the Cessna system.

 

[simtech]

My point: My instructor told me the Piper nosewheel does not rotate/steer in flight in response to rudder pedal actuation.

Yes it does! You've been told numerous times from those who know. Seriously take your CFI up and do a cross wind landing and don't center the rudder before touch down and be ready. Your CFI clearly needs some instruction on that and what a better way then to let him scramble trying to straighten it out. Haha

 

[Arbiter419]

All of the above...I'll add that it's a very similar system all the way up through the PA46 line. The Meridian/M500 is especially skittery on rollout if you don't have the nosewheel perfectly straight the moment it touches down. The Malibu/Mirage takes it a step further. The rudder trim system springloads the entire rudder...which then turns the nosewheel. So you could be in for a wild ride if you lower the nosewheel to the runway with a bunch of rudder trim in either direction.

 

[N1120A]

There's a reason you don't do a hard rudder check in a Cherokee like you do in a Cessna, and this is it. You can actually damage the nosewheel steering by doing it. A Cherokee handles crosswinds much better than a Cessna, but you do need to be mindful about this.