Hi Jeff-
They could indeed be some early versions of Henry's gear. I was amazed at the mudslinging going on in many of the retract posts concerning retract postings-who's better, etc... Many of the manufacturers and their reps cruise the sites. Perhaps this is a good thing so that they can improve upon the weak links in their products. Modelers tend to pay a premium for these devices due to such a small market. I did see one post worried about electric retracts burning up the servo wiring if the gear jams for some reason. I guess no one thought of installing a small properly sized fuse in the drive motor circuit. Another mentioned not liking micro switches-I work with them all the time on equipment I service and find them very reliable. They don't have lines that get pinched, go brittle, or leak around the nipples, or kink on tight bends. One can pick on any system I guess. Weight is not a problem on such a large model as this. Would I install these on an 80" model, no way. I think I will definitely try the gear and see how they hold up. I have not had any retracts where the scissors or bushings didn't get sloppy from use, or the struts didn't have any side play. This is a large model and I'm sure there will be some shortcoming from the gear but I will deal with it logically and improve the gear if need be. I hate tracking down air leaks so I'm ok with charging a small battery pack. You only cycle the gear for 6-8 seconds up then 6-8 seconds down per flight. Can only imagine how long a 123 battery would last under this use- a very long time on one charge. Another post mentioned 6061T6 was not considered structural aluminum-it's still pretty tough (some aluminum I find is soft) unless you really blow your landing. I will need to assemble one more unit or find one for sale somewhere-The Likes Line link is a dead one so looks like I'll be in my metal shop for awhile.

John A