Alright, I've found at least some partial answers to my question about Cluster types earlier. Three of the Cluster types are described briefly in the various Galaxy write-ups in FM: 3145.
Talon Clusters are "heavy."
Jaegers are "fast-moving."
Hussars are "lightweight."
That still leaves Dragoons, Velites and Striker Clusters. Anyone have any theories as to what those might be?
My company has some proprietary software for statistical analysis. I used it to setup an excel sheet that could generate a random cluster via RATs from whatever era. I used the Jade Falcon Sourcebook lists as a baseline to determine the frequency of weight class. For example, the RATs will tell you the frequency of each mech in each weight class, but there is no guidance on how many of each weight class to use. That’s where the statistics came in.
For those interested I assigned a number to each weight class (1 = light, 2 = medium etc.). This allowed me to determine mean and standard deviation for the cluster in quetion. I then setup a normal distribution. This determines which weight class to use for each mech. It’s a pretty simple matter after that for excel to “roll” 2d6 to determine the mech in each weight class. Note, that I used a single cluster of each type as an example and in some cases you could find another cluster of said type that deviates from the example I used. For instance, I think some of the battle clusters look more like talons, and some more like strikers. I looked them over and used what appeared to me to be the most representative example.
I was astonished at how light the Falcons were. It also sheds light on some of the unit types. The numbers below were generated with the Jade Falcon 3073 RAT. Also, the numbers below may deviate depending on the random example that comes up, but are remarkably consistent. It’s been a while since I used it, but if I remember correctly, average mech mass (the average mass of all the mechs randomly rolled up), only deviates by about 5 tons either way.
Finally, the numbers above aren't perfect since my "database" of non-omnimech stats, was not complete. So if a Kintaro was rolled up, it would have a mass and BV of 0. These gaps could move the averages a few tons either way, but looking things over does not have a significant impact. Units that are inherently frontline (i.e. all omnimechs) like the Keshik, have no such gaps.
Keshik – command unit, average mech mass is around 61 tons, average fighter mass is around 50 tons
Talon Clusters are indeed heavy/assault, average mech mass around 69 tons, average fighter mass is around 29.5 tons
Jaegers – fairly light, similar to strikers, average mech mass around 40 tons, average fighter mass is around 41.6 tons
Assault Cluster - fairly light, similar to strikers, average mech mass around 40 tons, average fighter mass is around 27.5 tons
Battle Cluster – Mid-weight, average mech mass around 48 tons, average fighter mass is around 33 tons
Regulars - Mid-weight, average mech mass around 52 tons, average fighter mass is around 19.5 tons
Strikers – fast, lightweight, think horse archers, average mech mass around 45 tons, average fighter mass is around 31 tons