I have only smoked one of mine. Its made of briar and smokes fine. Its kind of hard to keep lit though. When packing it, you have to pack a little tighter then you normally would. Also when smoking turn the pipe over occasionally so the tobacco burns evenly. So basically smoke it with one side facing up for a bit, the turn it over so the other side is facing up. They were Originally made for smoking on zeppelins since the ash and sparks are contained. It would be good for smoking in the car or when working outside.