There have been many gear failures with the retractable gear, but there must be a way to do it right as I tested mine terribly the first time I flew it and it passed with colors.
I foolishly took it to the nearest airport from where the plane was stored, 2700 ft. Oceanside, CA. I ended up sliding down the runway sideways in order to keep from going off the end. Left black tire marks for several hundred feet. I learned from that that if my landing gear could survive that kind of mistreatment it could stand up to anything else that might happen, and it did. The builder of my KR was Harold (Siggy) Siegenfield, a retired Convair engineer. He told me he put in a stronger cross bar than the plans called for. He may have put in stronger latches as well, being an engineer. The KR-2 just "looks right" with retractable gear. I don't see how Diehl's gear, or any gear, hanging in the wind can make a plane faster than one with nothing hanging down at all. But then I don't understand how the Columbia, Lancairs and Cirrus can be so fast with the gear hanging down either. Mike
