a little late, but I ordered these two pipes for me and my Dad for Father's Day:
Eltang Basics with my two kids' name etched on the bottom of both. huge shoutout to Tom and Pia for making this happen.
If you can afford it, my Eltangs are wonderful smokers. Eltang and Batson are my two favorite makers and, for what it's worth, I consider them worth the investment, but only if you got it to spare.
8 state was such an unexpected favorite of mine on its first release. I don't know if iver ever smoked through a tin as fast as that one. Looking forward to popping a tin of the newest release soon.
You can beat a Sandblasted pipe around more and it's much more forgiving. Outside of look preference, that's my main reason for preferring them over a nice looking smooth.