Bias Sunflower with NOS USAF RCA 2N404 Questions

[bzdunowski]

https://docs.pedalpcb.com/project/Sunflower.pdf

I built this Sunflower fuzz and went to bias it today and the internal bias trim is turned full clockwise abs the external sun face pot is at 3 o’clock in order for me to get 4.5 dcv. Is this normal? Seems extreme on the two pots just to get a 4.5 reading.

I know germanium and silicone are very different but when I did the bias on my https://docs.pedalpcb.com/project/Sandspur-PedalPCB.pdf the external sun face was at 12 o’clock and the internal trim was around 1 o’clock to get me 4.5 reading

 

[uranium_jones]

Curious, did you test the transistors beforehand? what were the hfe values?

 

[bzdunowski]

Curious, did you test the transistors beforehand? what were the hfe values?

I did not and I should have. i assume the forward voltage may be high causing the bias to use the entire 5k trimmer??