When I first traveled overseas to hike I took an MSR Whisperlite International Liquid-Fuel Stove. Everyone did in the 1990s. It was really the only option.
And I didn’t forget the MSR WhisperLite and Whisper Lite Int. Expedition Stove Service Kit. I NEEDED it.
The WhisperLite was dirty and unreliable. (Is it any better now?)
I finally gave mine away after the time it turned into a Molotov cocktail in my hand. I threw it like a grenade.
In 2007 I’m trying to use the much acclaimed JETBOIL system though not without some problems.
I go to the trouble of finding and transporting canisters.
Next time I need a multi-fuel stove I’m leaning towards the Brunton Optimus. Especially after reading this endorsement on the Walking the Wall blog from China:
Our stove is a Brunton Optimus Nova Multi-fuel Expedition Stove, and it is a miraculous piece of equipment. I (Brendan) have been through more stoves in the last 20 years than I care to count, and I have never had a liquid-fuel stove that remotely compares. I still marvel at the thing every day. I just can’t stop. …
As anyone who has used liquid-fuel stoves knows, they tend to clog. A lot. Most liquid-fuel stoves sold in Western countries burn white gas, which burns hot and is squeaky clean compared to fuels that are availabe in developing countries like diesel, petrol or kerosene. And still they clog.
In six months of continuous use, in temperatures from 40° Celsius to -20°, our stove has never clogged seriously. It rarely requires cleaning. And this is using regular old petrol, a filthy, inefficient fuel for camping-stove purposes.
Brunton Optimus Nova Multi Fuel Expedition Stove
Leave a comment if you have an opinion on the Optimus or any other multi-fuel stove.
besthike.com 
I’ve used the Whisperlite for years and many hundreds of boils without clogging. I believe the secret is to never take it apart except to replace parts. And use the intake filter. Those two things made my problems disappear.
Uh oh. I knew I’d get in trouble writing nice things about the stove!!
I haven’t used an MSR liquid-fuel stove for some years, but I have heard less in recent years about them clogging than I remember hearing in the past, as cyberhobo’s comment would suggest.
One other thing I didn’t mention in the blog, which might be relevant for some folks and less relevant for others – I’m a bit of a clown when it comes to gear. I don’t clean things when I should, I step on things that are lying in a big mess on the ground while I’m packing the tent in the morning, and generally I do pretty much everything in my power to ensure that my gear has the shortest lifespan possible.
But I can’t seem to kill that stove.
Not that Walking the Wall endorses any particular kind of gear or anything.