Originally Posted by
john_tullamarine
Later there was a mod to permit retraction.
Some DC9s of the late 1960s vintage had a means to close the MLG doors following emergency extension (pretty sure I'm remembering this accurately but my DC9 manual is buried in the storage locker): There was a crank below the F/Os flight kit stowage area that when turned (about a zillion times) took up slack in cables attached by clips to the circumference of the MLG doors...and pulled the doors closed.