The link provided by alexr may be useful to you -- some good points raised there by both RNB and RCS owners. I'm very happy with my RNB, and would gladly do it all over again, but the RCS seems to represent good value for money, especially on some of the special Costco deals I've seen posted. Some specs are different between the ranges, and you can decide how much that matters to you, but I've never heard that they build them anywhere else, or to a different level of QC. I suspect, rather, that Costco has negotiated a good price on a particular lot -- they do that sort of thing -- and that it's being disparaged by a salesman who is either passing along an unsubstantiated rumor or being . . . er, creative.

My wife and I went to a dealer that had both models in stock in a mock up kitchen and were told the following. The BS range has a better flame but the 20k btu burner of the KA is much stronger then the 15K star shaped burner of the BS. The side and front panels of the BS will get much hotter then the KA due to less insulation. The BS oven was not concidered to be a "true" convection oven when compared to the KA, which for me, I didn't really understand. The fact that the burners as well as oven will be much more work to clean was a real turn off for my wife. Keep in mind we have two kids at home that also like to cook but make a real mess while they're at it and don't like to clean up afterwards. The 15K burners on the BS were not strong enough for some homeowners, but that boils down to cooking styles/personal preference. The BS is not able to view cooking temperatures, but that is not a deal breaker, only a set back. I believe my wife is going to go with the KA.

Great point - Thanks so much for that idea- i will need to check and see if the item could be returned locally (in the worst case scenario like it being a total dud). I will call the local Costco and inquire - I wonder if they have ever addressed this before. I did review the written warranty from Bluestar and it says something to the effect: "warranty valid for all items purchased in US or Canada. It is looking like difference it will be the same range (RCS model) and after tax, etc would be approx $450 more to buy in the states. Not a huge amount but enough to make a difference and have me consider Canadian option (assuming it goes easily and relatively pain free). I will keep checking but have to pull the trigger eventually ... Don't want to be one of those who come back in 2 years saying "ok, I'm almost ready to buy" ...lol I did look on ebay and found 1 or 2 BS ranges. For anyone else thinking of doing this, beware of a company hawking BS ranges under the name if Markdown Madness - check some if their reviews on Merchant Circle. There is a similar outfit in my area (somehow associated with this Markdown Madness outfit) and they seem shady to say the least. 1 thing I think these shady ebay sellers do is sell a ton of simple items (shoes, lunch boxes, whatever) to overcome any negatives they may have selling high ticket scratch and dent items. At least that is the only way I can imagine a company maintaining a good ebay rating while having an "F" rating at the BBB and terrible reviews online (like Markdown Madness). In other words, if you are buying a "new" or "floor sample" item from ebay or craigslist, make sure you are buying from an actual dealer or personal seller and not from some guys using a storage garage to sell potentially non-warrantied items. Good luck getting any money back from people like this no matter what assurances they give you. Not saying you can't find a deal this way but you have to ask yourself if you have the capacity to deal with a total lemon (financially and emotionally). Unfortunately people looking for deals usually can't afford to buy another appliance if the "deal" goes bad. If it seems to good to be true - it probably is.

KA 20k btu burners are sealed with a very wide heat pattern. Only very wide pans will capture a good percentage of the heat. Even with large pans the Bluestar will have more power actually making it to the bottom of the pan because the heat is directed right to the bottom of the pan not to the side. Plus the heat will be much more even across the bottom of the pan. KA has a history of blowing fuses during self-clean. Better as of late but still something to keep in mind. With KA you get electric oven features but possible electric oven heachaches and cost of repair with integrated circuit boards etc. I can't find the interior dimensions or the broiler rating for the KA but with the BS it will fit commercial baking sheets and you get a very powerful broiler too.