Good Star Party EPs

Last week, we had a cul-de-sac party and when it got dark, I pulled the XT10 out for everyone to have a look at the money shots. I am a rookie astronomer and this was my first "star party". Best views were the Pentax XL 10.5mm with the TV 2.5x powermate (eq platform made this a cinch). Everyone oohed and awed and I was very proud of my rig. I packed everything up as usual and had our first good night of wether tonight. Pulled out the Pentax 10.5 and had a peek at Saturn. First look was way out of focus and their were these horrible virus looking bugs floating all over the place. Pulled out the Pentax and it looked like someone had licked it and let it dry. Oh my. Took about a half hour of very careful cleaning with distilled water to get the dried up gunk off and return the Pentax to service.

Anyway, I have learned a newbie lesson: don't use premium ep's for star parties.

So, is there an ep that is easy to use for non-astronomers that I can use at star parties? I figure 2 ep's, 25mm and 10mm, would work very nice. I can use my 2x, 2.5x and 5x powermates as they won't risk getting goo on them. Something with good eye relief and forgiving of eye placement would be nice. FOV isn't a big issue as I have the tracking platform. Something that can hold up to cleaning would be nice also. I have an Orion Epic ED-2 25mm that will do for my 25mm ep. I also have an Orion Expanse 9mm, but I have a hard time seeing through it due to blackouts, so I'm sure other folks will have a hard time as well. Maybe the Orion Epic ED-2 9.5mm.

Another thing I would consider is the Orion Ultra Zoom (on sale for $149) or the GTO zoom that is always a reasonable $54.

Thanks for the help,

Tom

I like the Adorama Pro-Optic Plossls,
especially the 25, 17, and 12.5mm.
Nice views and you won't feel too bad
if they get mashed or disappear.

Tom
The old dilemna, how do you show the public views that will impress them without paying the price of mascara on your favorite oculars. Often the planets are what impress folks the most. In the cloudynights review on planetary eyepieces Televue Plossls and RKE eyepieces were both favorably received. They can be purchased on Astromart for as little as 50-60 bucks for TV Plossls and even less for RKE's (these don't show up as much.) Perhaps others will have better suggestions.
Kim