Clays are nice - until they are not

[Opus X]

I love a well made clay pipe, but the cheaper made ones can be problematic.
I have found that they are usually not well fired and if you are a hot smoker, you will end up with them cracking.
I used to have several, but over time they all suffered from either cracking or being accidentally dropped. When I first started smoking them I did not really worry that much, as the ones I bought were never very expensive. But now, clay pipes have risen more in cost than even cobs have. A cheap German style that I used to pay around $4.50 for is now around $10.00. The corn cobs have only gone up around $2 over what I used to pay.
I do like the way the clay pipes smoke over a cob. The cob adds some sweetness to the smoke that the clay does not.

 

[Tracy]

Yes, I have found that clay (and similar materials) usually do not impart any flavoring or taste notes into the tobacco. It is why I use them to get the true flavor of the tobacco.
But, like you, I have found them to be somewhat delicate. I usually keep a few of the cheaper ones around and I used to only use them for the same tobacco all the time, so I ended up over the years with several that I didn't use because I no longer smoked the tobacco that I used in them.