Hi BrunoPuntzJones,
I think the first post I would read is post #1 here. This will outline some steps you can take that can greatly increase the odds of finding the best mattress with the “best bang for the buck” … for you.
The key in this is the “for you” part because mattresses are as individual as people and each person has a different idea of what “bang for the buck” really means. Buying either the cheapest, the best value, or the most expensive mattress would all be money misspent if the mattress didn’t fit your needs and preferences. The goal is always to find the mattress that provides the pressure relief and support/spinal alignment you need and has the other preferences you want and are important to you. This can be done in any budget range but of course in higher budgets you will find better quality and more durable materials or more complex designs for those who need or prefer them. All of this is a series of tradeoffs between the pros and cons of every choice … including price.
As you can see from the linked post … the first step is to eliminate the worst choices … the next one is to gather some basic information so you know about the differences between different materials and types of mattresses … the next step is to research the better “local” outlets so you can begin to test the materials and the types of mattresses that you have been learning about and decide on which combinations of materials you prefer in “real life” … and the final step is to choose the one that best fits your needs and preferences at each manufacturer or retailer you are working with and make a final decision between them.
If your local retailers or manufacturers don’t have the type of value that you want (and there are not a lot of great choices in Texarkana that I could see) or if they can’t tell you the details of what is in their mattresses (and I would interview them first along the lines of this article) … then you can either go further away to the ones that are more open and transparent and have better value or you can work with some of the better online retailers or manufacturers. You can still test different types of mattresses at local retailers to get a better sense of the general types of mattresses that you prefer (such as slow response comfort materials like memory foam or gel foam or fast response like latex or polyfoam and an innerspring support core or a polyfoam or latex support core).
At this point you will know the type of mattress that you generally prefer and you could either call the retailers or manufacturers that are further away to make sure they carry the types of mattresses that you are considering at a reasonable price or you could work with one of the recommended online manufacturers and go by their guidance and suggestions that “on average” would be suitable for your body type, sleeping style, and any other feedback that was important based on your local testing. They are all very good to work with and are well worth talking to on the phone once you know the general types of materials that you prefer.
Of course your other option would be to do it yourself without the guidance of a retailer or manufacturer but since you have a “model” that you know you like you should be able to approximate it to some degree (depending on how much you know about the details of the foams you purchased last time).
The manufacturers that are closest to you are in the Little Rock area in post #2 here and in the Dallas/Fort worth area in post #4 here.
The members of this site that specialize in online sales and will work with you on the phone to help you decide between the models or options they carry are in post #21 here. If you are considering memory foam … then there are a few additional options in post #12 here.
If you do decide to go on your own without the help and guidance of a manufacturer or retailer and just order the materials that you believe may be close to the mattress you have now … then there are some suppliers of various materials listed in post #4 here that you could talk to that can supply the layers or components you want.
Phoenix