hfe

Well, that's a strange result.

Many transistors work equally well even if you reverse the C and E connections, but it should work better if you connect it as the manufacturer has intended it to be used.

You could try to use it in a common type of circuit, like a common emitter amplifier circuit, and try it both ways and see what works best.

Maybe this type of test doesn't work so well for that particular type of transistor, or maybe it is wrongly marked, I don't know, but that way to identify the pins usually works.

Well -- you did qualify the claim that the transistor would work 'equally well', but the differences are very serious. For example, the collector breakdown voltage in reverse would likely be much much lower for most transsitors. Also, most discrete transistors have much lower beta in reverse (however, you can find some that have high beta in reverse, which can have significant effect on Vce saturation voltage.)

John

I hope this clarifies the issue to "j van c" better than what I could give him.

Thanks.