Hallberg-Rassy
Active member
I knew a guy whose boat came with a junk rig. He changed it back to a bermuda. He said the mast did tend to whiplash, the designer saying that this was supposed to be the way it absorbed wind shocks. I was surprised how slim it was, from memory about 150mm diameter in Alloy for a 25' boat. Needlespar made them.An unstayed mast is designed to resist bending, a cantilever as Little Sister pointed out.
I know nothing about them, but you do see a lot of unstayed trees and lamp posts, so I guess they are safe beyond a point most people consider sailing in.
I read up about Asian boats. Traditionally, there seemed to be a huge variety in rig designs but I can't say I remembered seeing anyone using them any more. One tactic was to have folding masts that they dropped to sit out storms with, so I guess they must have had some kind of stays to pull them back up with.