NKT10339 suggestions, low Hfe

[col]

I got some NKT10339 transistors from a bag at the back of a shop while mithering for NPN Ges. They are old and no-one in the shop knew if they were Ge or Si and only after checking on the internet once I got home did I find out that they are definately NPN Si. They have a consistent Hfe of 45-50 and I wondered if anyone could suggest a decent or interesting project for them other than the obvious fuzz face or treble booster. I have tried them in place of Ge in a few circuits and they work well but don't have a Ge sound, they sound different to modern Si though. They also found an ancient blue bodied Ge in the shop which must have cost a fortune when it was made, it looked like plastic but may have been some other material. She was going to put it on e-bay.
They are the lowest gain trannies I have, even lower than some 'red spot' Ges I bought and I don't want to waste them on something I could use a more modern unit on.

[beans_amps]

Have you considered a Trotsky Drive, Rangemaster, or a Maestro Fuzz?

Is the blue Ge one of these? http://semiconductormuseum.com/PhotoGallery/PhotoGallery_RaytheonBlues.htm

Sean

[col]

I have built several versions of the rangemaster and despite believing it is the single most justified DIY circuit ever I really can't justify another one! I like the maestro fuzz but have a clone and will look at the Trotsky drive tomorrow.
The blue one didn't look like that it looked like a Ge 'top hat' in a blue plastic case but it has a bakelite sort of look about it and the leads were exceptionally thin like strands of thin wire. She also had some in a 'test tube' with a stopper at the end. I suspect that their gain is miniscule and useless from our point of view other than a 'MOJO' factor, rather like hissy carbon comp resistors. I await the abuse but I really think carbon film and especially metal film are far superior after direct tests, at least with 9v.