I got this MM Country Gentleman pipe in an Ebay purchase. I had purchased a hanging wall pipe rack/cabinet with a couple of drawers at the bottom and this pipe was in there rattling around. It was used, had a crack in the bowl, and didn't have a stem. Later on I put a "Forever Stem" in it and decided to see how it smoked and how long it would last with the crack in the bowl. It's been a great smoker for the 6-8 months that I've been using it. It smokes as good as any briar that I own and passes the pipe cleaner test. My girlfriend said that I should throw it away since there are plenty of other pipes to smoke. I took out the Forever stem and tossed it in the trash yesterday only to dig it out this morning to smoke some Barking Dog in it. It's like an old friend and I can't bear to get rid of it until the crack gets bigger and it is no longer smokeable. The crack has been growing each time it is smoked; it doesn't affect the smoking characteristics and doesn't leak ashes or sparks. I've smoked non-aromatics and some English blends in it and it gives a cool, dry smoke every time. The bowl is medium-large (1.5" deep, .75" diameter) so it has plenty of room. Missouri Meerschaum has perfected these pipes, both in the production and the development of special corn cultivars for the purpose of making smoking pipes. Most of the newer MM's have hardwood plug bottoms to help prevent burnout. Another possible area that might pose a burnout threat is where the wood shank comes into the bowl. I once had a MM burn gradually burn through at that point of construction. The actual walls of the corncob bowl are very resistant to heat and should not burn through unless there is an imperfection in the structure. Missouri Meerschaum corncob pipes are an incredible value in smoking pipes. Steer clear of cheap imitators.