Originally Posted by
noglider
They were fragile. You had to use them very carefully, and even then, they would still fail. They were the best thing in some situations such as the original small-splined Shimano freewheel, because the only way to use a standard extractor was to remove the axle from the hub, and that was something mechanics wanted to avoid.
Oops I hadn't read your post before I sent mine claiming I've never seen a Phil tool fail. I mean, I haven't, but maybe I "need to get out more". My time as a mechanic predates that tool; by the time I had one I was a frame builder and I didn't work side by side with mechanics anymore, so my dataset is pretty just me with my tool, working on my own bikes. A pro in a busy shop would have used his many times more than me.