Original poster here...I contacted Sears again about this. They assured me that there is no difference with the exception of stitching. I then went online and began to purchase the Beautyrest Long Lake II luxury firm and the "chat" box came up. I thought...why not. I asked the same question that I asked above to the Sears chat person. She initially told me the "specs were the same for both mattresses" I asked her to figure out why one was so much more then the other (and why the store was showing me and letting me test the better model but would only let me purchase the lesser one). Here is the answer:

Paris J: I am showing the Beautyrest Recharge Long Lake Luxury Firm Queen Mattress also has a layer of plush comfort foam infused with GelTouch™. Paris J: I am showing the Beautyrest Recharge Long Lake II Luxury Firm Queen Mattress has a innerspring-meets-memory-foam type of mattress. Paris J: Those are the biggest differences.

The stores (2 that I went to) have the Long Lake (with plush comfort foam infused with GelTouch) on the floor to test with the name "Long Lake" but the price and code numbers for the Long Lake II (innerspring-meets-memory-foam type mattress) -- bait and switch. The store tells me they can not order the better mattress - Long Lake - because they are the same thing, just newer name, in their computer - same codes. According to their specs (and the specs online) they are the exact same mattress but with a different covering. The Sears store could only order me the inferior mattress -- and the codes on the better floor model (labeled accurately as the Long Lake) are actually the code for the cheaper mattress. However they are NOT the same quality mattress - even with the same specs, from the same store, with the same name except for a II at the end. In the store they appear to only be able to order the inferior Long Lake II (even though they have the better Long Lake there for testing at the price of the inferior). Online I can order the better mattress that I tested (I believe - but how would I really know???) for double the price. When contacting Sears customer service they say "prices can vary online from the stores" and to "contact the store". The store tells me that the model I am testing is the exact same as the one they are ordering for me even though there is that pesky II at the end of the name - just different cover stitching. They will gladly order me the mattress that is coded the same as the one I tested for the price advertised (but it is NOT the one that I was laying on in the store and they are NOT the same). I talked to managers and also on the phone with Sears and they confirmed that the LONG LAKE (better) is on the floor but will not allow me to purchase that for the price that it is showing. On the phone they are more then willing to sell me the more expensive mattress for the "online" price (double)- but can not honor the price in the store for the mattress that it is sitting on top of (Long Lake) because they can't even do that in their computer (codes automatically revert to Long Lake II).

This is why so many people complain that the mattress they tested in the store was so different from the one they got home - even though they were assured (and they were labeled) as the same mattress. It is a fraud.