I'll throw in my two cents worth of agreement on delaying gear exension until a lower airspeed. When I was a fleet manager at an airline, we reduced gear extension speed on my airplanes from the certificated 250 to 215 knots as SOP. Some minor cracking that had been appearing on the older aircraft ceased.
If you've ever watched the 337 gear cycle on jacks, it looks like it can catch a lot of wind. I shoot for intial flaps no faster 120 (if I've planned right) and gear at around 100.
Joe (Ahab)
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