I used Horton's for a long time and never had any problems with mine. As you know you have some friends that have had good luck also. I know two guys at work that are doing just fine with the 150# models. One thing that I might think may be better for your son is the Excalibur vixen and that is because of weight. I think my Excal Vortex is alot lighter then both of my Horton's. Also with the Excal you can be free of a shop and can do all your own string work. But that is another point that my be good or bad with you. How much do you plan on letting your son shoot the CB? If you will just have him shoot it a little preseason and do not want to mess with the CB much then get a Horton. But if he will be shooting alot then and could wear out servings then Excal would be a good choice. I would say the Horton is a good turn Key CB if you do not shoot much. But if you want to do lots of shooting and are willing to string and unstring to adj your brace height then the Excal is the way to go IMO. I like to tinker, I am on my fourth different style string with my Excal. With a Horton I could not tinker. The Excal will also make a good seldom shooter also, just you have the ability to play more with it. I also think the lighter CB will be better for him IMO. Plus the Vixen will be a CB he can use for a long time, forever! Smokepolehall just tagged a nice buck with his Vixen!