Michelle P wrote:
In talking to another pilot who has an 172 L has states that his manual
says if 10 degrees flaps are used it will decrease ground roll and
decrease climb rate. Having an overall detrimental affect.

I have a 172S manual It's my understanding that, in terms of flaps and
related performance, all models after L are exactly the same.

My manual says that "using 10 degrees of wing flaps reduces the ground
toll and total distance over an obstacle by approximately 10 percent."
For a short field takeoff, that would be an overall beneficial affect,
not detrimental.

It's my experience that, at low airpseeds, 10 degrees of flaps
increases my climb performance substantially.