You really can't go wrong with a cob, just to hammer what others have said. They are cheap, they are dependable, have a good open draw, great for clenching and working on whatever whenever, you don't have to worry about banging them up or having dings in them because again, they're cheeeeeeap, you can get cheap after market stems for them as well if you hate the soft plastic that some of them come with (others come with acrylic stems) etc.
You can even mix some cigar ash with water into a thick paste and mortar the bottom of the chamber so they smoke even better (youtube is your friend). I own three cobs, I smoke em a lot in the winter where I am, ya know... when its -30C outside and I am clearing the driveway of snow and don't want to feck up one of my good pipes, occasionally even using a small flame torch lighter when its also windy as much as it is cold.
Cobs are extremely utilitarian even if you prefer the finer briars and meerschaums, it's worth having a few in your stable.