Sell and buy at your own risk...
 #108431  by TI4-1009
 
I just got my Tiger from Phil yesterday and I'm floored. I'll post pics soon over in discussion, but for me it was well worth the (admittedly frustrating) wait. Just beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
 #108433  by mijknahs
 
TI4-1009 wrote:I just got my Tiger from Phil yesterday and I'm floored. I'll post pics soon over in discussion, but for me it was well worth the (admittedly frustrating) wait. Just beautiful, beautiful, beautiful.
Hi-rez pics and detailed review please! T1, T2 or T3?
 #108675  by JEFFREY GOTTCIA
 
Hi everyone...first time poster, long time fan.
I happened across this post on the web and thought I should speak out after reading some posts.

I too was intrigued when i first saw Phil's creations. I emailed him and like another poster stated, had contact ...then none...at least for a bit....he is a very busy guy who I got to know quite well. I was also apprehensive about throwing out my hard earned money on an axe that i had never had in my hands. I scrolled and drooled and scrolled and drooled some more....finally battling with my finances, i mustered up the guts and money and had him send me his Phiga Casta Honduran mahogany guitar.... I told him how i liked my action ( very low with 9's ) and he gave me my choice of strap buttons and locations of them. When it arrived....I was floored !! It was and still is a beautiful piece of musical art work and with a tiny bit of personal tweaking to my liking, it is a fantastic "keeper" of an instrument ! The neck is a bit long-ish and it is a bit neck heavy, but with this particular model, one can compensate for that with positioning of the body. The finish was fantastic, the frets were near perfect, the pickup selection and controls are very versatile and the looks and feel just make me smile like the first time you ever saw Dark Star live :hail: !

Phil is a good person, a great craftsman, and a very kind soul. He is the kind of guy that you will support when you can. He makes a very nice product for a very good deal. The Jerry tribute gits are a little up there, but not really considering the wood work, but the Casta model, which i have, was well under a grand with a case. Obviously looks are subjective, but it has a very Jerry vibe and look to the sculpting and lower bout without being and exact knockoff of one of my heros. My Casta Honduran is a few years old and just as nice as the day it arrived. It is not my main player, as I have a few that go out to jams, but it is a special, magical piece that plays and sounds great and makes me smile the widest !
Cheers to all !
JG
 #108697  by TI4-1009
 
Welcome to the board JG! Good post. After 16 months of dealing with Phil I would agree with your assessment. The only negative I have is that I think Phil sometimes takes on too much and then targets slip and that leads to frustration (on both ends). So you have to be patient if you go Phiga. But in terms of the quality of work, value of product, and honesty- absolute.
 #145254  by Sh8kdown
 
I know - I'm adding to an old thread. But I just stumbled on a post here from cmnround on the previous page. That was my guitar- a Phiga Tiger with jumbo frets and high action. Cmnround is absolutely right. But the set up was my fault. I always wondered why I sounded out of tune on our recordings. Since then the action was set, frets fixed, and the guitar is great. It's heavy. But with obel, midi, and all that layered wood I expected that.
My experience with Phiga was positive. He warned me about the frets and action. So I got what I asked for. I'd buy from Phiga again.
 #145255  by Jon S.
 
Like a steam locomotive, rolling down the track ...
This listing (200495641605) has been removed, or this item is not available.
 #155937  by Wedge
 
Newbie to the forum here... I just wanted to chime in on Phil's work. I am a retired sound engineer, and was lucky enough to mix one of his Wolf tributes a few years back. As a frustrated player... I got to play a few riffs on it... and I stuck with me. I loved it, and kept looking for one to pop up on the used sites. Oddly... none ever did. That in itself told me something. I have a few guitars, 2 59 Strats, a 62 Strat, a 54 Esquire, a 58 Tele... a couple of Gibsons, all pre 70 that I found on the road when I toured, and I love the old fat necks. The Wolf still stood out as a unique guitar. I finally contacted Phil and he had a few in stock, just needed set ups. I paid him online, and it took 8 days from our first emails to have it in my hands. It is incredible. He set it up exactly the way I wanted it, his craftsmanship is flawless. What his voice sounds like... I couldn't tell you, all communication was by email. He was fast on the response and answered all my questions, which were many.The neck takes some getting used to, but thats my fault, not his. Its no heaver than my LP's, and the tonal spectrum is unlimited between the taps and active preamp. This thing just makes my Boogie MKII scream, and gave me a whole new attitude towards my old 59 Princeton. Phil's work is incredible... and he builds a great guitar. Just thought I would add my 2 cents worth.
 #156044  by kralltime
 
Old thread here and the commentary likely is no longer in the right forum, but I'll chime in anyway since my circumstance is exactly as the original poster back in 2010. A 2016 bolt came up on Reverb/Ebay... only owned for 4 or 5 months - I bought it (2 weeks go). Not sure why I bought it, since I have two custom instruments in process... but I figured it was a decent deal and could fill a gap for a while before my other guitars show up.

I read all the old reviews... a lot of talk about faulty electronics, and some setup issues, but never anything negative about his wood working skills - then I started to see newer reviews and a definite change of opinion from people... and a partnership between Phiga and Brewer on Electronics - I talked to the seller and decided to go for it.
As background, I have owned several instruments like this - in particular a Moriarty Wolf.

When this instrument showed up and I opened the case - I was stunned by the build quality... it is every bit as good as the others I've owned. The woodworking is fantastic, the guitar setup is excellent with low action, the frets are nice, the electronics are perfect, I'd give the finish a 9 out of 10, but you have to look close to see any imperfections. There were issues with my past buys in this category that I won't really comment on here, but let me say that builder reputation is more about perception than it is reality - I had what I consider major issues with builds that are from guys with the best reputations in the world (and highest prices). Phiga is charging more now for a fully featured instrument, but from what I see - he's still very competitive and he's very good.

There are no issues with this Phiga Bolt, it's a wonderful instrument and it weighs under 9 pounds! It sounds fantastic - at least at home, I haven't had it out at rehearsal yet... probably this coming week. I don't know what I'm going to do with this long term, I have a homemade Alligatorish stat that is the best playing, best sounding thing I've ever touched... and one of my customs is showing up next week. I'll likely sell it soon, but I'm very pleased with it out of the box - very pleased!
 #156050  by Gr8fulCadi
 
Phil was an absolute pleasure to work with. I honestly never felt the need to talk on the phone with him as emails were perfectly fine with me. In fact, everyone I've bought gear from, SMS, SSP, AO, Wald, etc I've only emailed anyways so it's no different to me.
I had a small seam issue in the finish with my Eagle 3 years after I purchased it from him. He didn't hesitate to fix it at no cost other than shipping. In fact, I asked him if I shipped it back to him, if he could install a new bridge, saddle, and new tunners I purchased. I also asked if he could add a brass nut as well. I told him I would GLADLY pay him for his time and he refused to take any payment.. I was floored!! I would buy from him again in an absolute heartbeat. My Eagle is drop dead gorgeous ( still can't figure out how do add a photo) and a true pleasure to play. And yes, they are real super II's and not knock offs if you specifically ask for Super II's that's what you'll get.
Thought I'd chime in, as I have had good luck buying from boutique builders based from this site. I'm currently having a real hard time from one builder in particular that I'll keep unnamed unless something comes about real soon.

Phils da man!!