Confused about strings gauge reccomendations...
General mountain dulcimer or music discussions
Second the suggestion to buy a number of single strings and experiment. It's what I did, and while it is a pain at first, it's the easiest way to find what you like. As Dusty says, there's not a lot of practical difference between the two manufacturers' recommendations, but , your personal playing style may introduce differences that neither you nor the manufacturer could have anticipated. And, your needs can change. If you have sensitive fingers or hand problems, you may choose to start lighter and see if you can manage a heavier set (or like the sound of one) later on.
One issue with shorter VSLs is that the heavier gauge bass strings can lose some of their resonance on the higher notes (if you play chord-melody style or your finger dancing goes across the strings). That's one reason I ended up using a .020 gauge on my bass--it hit the right balance both ways. Not so light as to make extraneous sounds, but not too heavy to vibrate nicely a bit further up the scale. Plus, when played as a drone, it has a particularly nice rich, clean sound.
For single strings (or bargain packs), the nice people here pointed me to juststrings.com , which I can now recommend in turn.
