Wood Stoves

We will be buying a wood stove this summer.   I've been doing a lot of research and we narrowed it down to these three:

1. Vermont Castings,  Encore:
 $3250 - enamel finish.
Heats up to 1800 sq ft.
Medium sized firebox
27" (W)
25-3/4" (H)
22-3/4" (D)
Burn Time: 12 hours
Converts from catalytic to non-catalytic.
Lower ash pan that swings out from the bottom for clean out.
Top or front load, 22" logs
Small cook top already on - no conversion

2.  Regency,  H200 

$2350

Heats up to 1500 sq ft

Medium sized firebox

23.875" (W)
27.625" (H)
25.125" (D)

Burn time:  6 hours 

Front load, 16" logs

Automatic blower
Top lifts off so you can use firebox as cooktop.
Ash pan pulls out like a drawer

3.  Quadra-Fire,  Yosemite

Starting at $2089

Heats up to 1500 sq ft

Small size firebox.

25.625" (W)
24.313" (H)
25" (D)

Burn Time:  9 hours

Side or front load, 18" logs

Cooktop under cover
Ash pan swings out?

A couple of weekends ago, in between snowstorms, we went to Economy Fireplace in Ellettsville, Indiana and took a look at them.  Jim Herbst spent a lot of time talking to us and explaining how things work and what all was on the insides of all the stoves we looked at. [Great guy!  Very friendly and knowledgeable.  He gave us a tip on gloves - Go get a pair of welding gloves; they last a lot longer than fireplace gloves.] 

We saw the Vermont Castings Encore up close and personal.  They didn't have the Yosemite, but they had something very similar by Quadra-Fire.  They had the larger Regency H300 instead of the H200, but it's essentially the same stove, just different sizes.  So, we feel like we have enough information to make a final decision sometime here soon.

It was interesting to see how the top load felt as opposed to the side load and front loads.  It was interesting to see the ash pan arrangements.   It was nice to see the finishes.   Prices differ depending on the finish - The Encore price up there is for the enamel finish. The Regency would cost more with the enamel finish and I'm not sure about the Yosemite, since they didn't have that one and I had to pull a price off the internet. 

Which do you guys like best?