The nice thing about typical alcohol stoves is that there are no moving parts. Basically, all you need is a metal cup or pop can cut in half, just something to hold the alcohol while it burns.

Once, I fired up my MSR Whisperlite after not having used it for a few years. An "O" ring had cracked, a bit of fuel leaked, and it burst into flames. Yipes! I got the fire out, but had to replace the pump.

An alcohol stove with it's "nothing to go wrong" design is a nice thing to throw in a kit that you don't intend to get out very often. I know a guy who puts caches in of food and supplies in the areas where he hikes in the backcountry a lot. An alcohol stove is perfect for something like that.

Well, enough thread-jacking for now.

As to the original poster's situation, I hope he'll update us on how it goes with trying an Esbit/charcoal combination for trips on the road.

HJ