Part number S-1483-2 or -1 is what you are looking for. In the manual they show another part number for the bracket. Most of us do not need that but the parts which you will find often include it as they include the whole assembly.
I got one from Avparts in Newnan, GA and a quick search of their inventory shows they still have one in stock. Its the -2 part number meaning it is left handed, which I THINK means it goes on the pilot door. I think I paid around 135$ for it and yes thats what they go for and possibly more if you want a new part. It is getting nearly impossible to find salvage or repaired latches anymore as we are buying them all up. Repairing a corroded or worn assembly is extremely difficult also as finding the individual parts is just about impossible at this point.
Cessna never meant for these little birds to be flying 30-40 years later. We were all supposed to be upgrading!!!
I have seen the wrong sided parts used and they will still work just fine. I got one from Rex up in Clinton this year and bought a new one from Avparts this summer for the pilot side, since it gets used all the time. The one I bought from Rex is wrong sided and I used it for the pax side with good results. Both my latches were going bad and the pax side was taped shut for a bit.
Good luck with this, its one of those special parts which is getting really hard to find, but which most of us need taking care of these old planes.
Niagra Air Parts has them also. They are about $145.00 each.
I have thought about taking some of these latches and remanufacturing them. This should be a $35.00 part, and $145.00 is just simply outrageous.
Also, you could do a Mama search to find where someone claimed a certain Volkswagen latch will work well. I haven't seen this particular latch myself, and I don't think a Volkswagen latch would be an approved replacement...
I know folks have "discussed" those alternate parts before but unless your good doing metal work and want to drill new holes in your window frame they really are not an option. I got hold of an old VW latch just like in that post above and could not figure out how it would work the same. You'll need a different striker plate, hardware, and need new holes to mount it with. On top of that it just does not work like the ones we have now with how the current bracket mounts to the window frame.
I haven't had the opportunity to compare the VW model to the originals, however, I have a spare Cessna latch awaiting a test I wanted to try. It seems to me, the weak point in the design is the cheesy pot metal spring holder/button that's incorporated into the design. Usually, (let's not use that word) at least in the broken latches I've looked at, it's the button that fails, not the latch itself.
I wanted to fabricate a replacement button using a piece of round stock brass, drilling a hole in the bottom to accept the spring and then, drilling a perpendicular hole through the brass stock to insert a cold rolled pin, in order to keep the buttom secured in the handle and not flying across the cabin. The finishing touch would be to round the head/thumb area off to match the original. It seems as though this would work, but as I said, I haven't tried it yet.
Here's a rudimentary diagram of what I had in mind:
The real trick would be making a button with the two 'ears' that lock the handle in place. When the 'ears' wear down, the handle no longer locks in place.
I measured the button from my window latch. I have too many tongs in the fire to try and figure out how to manufacture this piece. I have found automotive restoration catalogs that sell such window latch buttons for only $5, but none that match ours:
Kirk, Basically, what I was thinking was, the cold rolled pin (drawn in red) would replace the 2 blades/ears of the original, serve the same function and allow the button to slide in the handles pre-cut grooves. Similar to your modified drawing posted below:
I think one of the other huge problems comes from corrosion inside the bracket attached to the window and the base of the rotating part of the latch itself. The openings in each of these ends up getting wallowed out and the latch gets loose in the mounting. I think there is also a washer or ring inside the latch base which gets either broken or corroded and this also causes loose operation of the latch.
The plastic button is also a weak point as you have noted. That looks like a good fix to that problem but the corroded window bracket "insides" seems to be just as big an issue.
I think we need to find a way to get a hold of these as a club. Like a whole stash of these things. Everyone who wants can pitch in a few bucks to do it, and we can see how many we can purchase. We then charge only a small amount for the part, like 45-50$ so only folks who really need them buy one. I'd be willing to do that.
The next solution is to find someone who can make these things at a reasonable cost. 135-45$ is a ridiculous amount to pay for these simple parts.
I replaced both of mine for about $15.00 each by watching for "parts" planes on Barnstormers. I found several over a short period that were in pretty good shape. I should have bought them all to resell.
