Late to the game, but I own multiple R.C. Sands pipes and I have to say they are hands down the best smokers I have. It's said on multiple articles about the fellow that his singular goal is to make the best smoking pipes he possibly can, and I couldn't agree with this more. R.C. has a saying, that his pipes are for smoking, not collecting, and he'd prefer you "smoke the daylights out of them" No matter the design, his pipes smoke like a freight locomotive. I had such a damn good smoking experience with my first RCS pipe that I collected two more. As of right now I have zero interest in owning a pipe by anyone else, and I hope to obtain an entire collection by the fellow before he quits his craft. I've even contemplated selling off my other pipes (Savs, Stanwells, Wileys, etc.) as I doubt I'll use them much ever again. Took me 25+ pipe purchases over the years to find the perfect maker, but R.C. Sands is exactly that.
With all that being said, I'm a utilitarian. I want pipes that work well more than I want a pretty aesthetic piece or collector's item. So R.C. Sands fits my bill better than anyone else. I hope you find the same if you ever attain one of his fantastic pieces of work.