ORIGINAL: CRG
It can matter a great deal with a taildragger, especially if the gear retracts aft (Corsair, Hellcat, Warhawk etc.). It rarely matters much on a tricycle-geared model as the nose gear remains forward of the CG whether up or down.
ORIGINAL: RCFlyerDan
IHMO, with a tail dragger, it doesn't matter. The only time it matters is on a tricycle gear, due to retracted, the nose gear shifts the wt to a more tail heavy situation.
I forgot about those warbirds, and knew I was going to get caught on that statement, so, yes, I agree on those war birds that swing the gear forward or aft, balance gear up, or at the point of the most extreme. On my tricycle turbine jets, it DOES MATTER for the balance! I fly them on the rear edges of my CG, so retracting the gear can still go to the tail heavy postion in flight with fuel burn from 4 tanks on my F-18. The Flash and Viper aren't as critical, but since I fly 3D with them on some manuevers, ex: an inverted flat spin, blenders, etc. I have those two jets balanced on the aft part of the CG, or maybe even behind. The CG is only the beginning balance point from the manufacture, then I continue to balance in the air after several flights, and reading the "signs" of the plane/jet talking to me.