A cantilever is a beam supported on only one end. The beam transfers the load to the support where it has manage the moment of force and shear stress. Moment of force is the tendency of a force to twist or rotate an object.Shear stress is defined as a stress which is applied parallel to the face of a material.he formula for the maximum stress a cantilever beam can tolerate is given by. 1  σ max = (M max) * (y) / (I), Where M max is the maximum moment (which is equal to M 1 + M 2), y is the distance from the center to the outer edge, and I is the area of the cross-section of the beam.