Colin,
I sail a Boyer Mark 4 with a Hall Mast and Goodall sail in Bristol RI, USA. I am very new to the A-class so my opinions are a bit suspect but here goes.

Platform: The Flyer platform seems to be the most popular and successful around here. I think all of them are Boyer manufactured Flyers. Locally we have Flyers, a Melvin A2, Several Boyer Mark 4’s and a Mark 3 and a Bimarre XJ nearby. Most of the better sailors have opted for the Flyer. I am incredibly impressed with the build quality of the Boyer boats

Rigs: Because Hall Spars is very close and Ben hall sails here, Hall masts predominate in this area. The build quality of these masts seems to be excellent. The masts come in several stiffness levels depending on skipper’s weight. Most people are using proctor spreaders; a few have custom carbon stuff.

Sails are a mixture. Goodall, Smyth, Ulman, Irwin, Ashby are represented here. My observation is that the Goodall is flatter on top then most of the other sails. It seems very fast upwind when the wind is up, not so good in lighter stuff. I weigh 75 kilo’s.

If I had the cash to buy a new boat today, here is what it would be:

Boyer Flyer Platform, mast and rigging from Hall Spars built for my weight, and an Ashby Mainsail.

Good Luck whatever you buy, a cats are awesome machines and a true joy to sail.

Eric Anderson
US 128