My 1978 SCOC "D" section mast was converted to pre-bend in the mid 80's and has never experienced any problems. The original IYE "110" masts used on Tornados had a short cord and no raked spreaders. These masts tended to invert downwind and probably would not handle the diamond/downhaul loads of the prebendrig. My recollection is that the prebend rig established its superiority at the 1983 Tornado worlds and was the dominant rig at the LA Olympics in 1984.

David Melcon US 645