[Noisebridge-discuss] Help with Simple Circuit : Blinking LED

[Mike Chambers]

I am trying to get a simple blinking LED circuit working, and am
following the following schematic:

http://tronixstuff.files.wordpress.com/2010/06/pic23.jpg

Where:

C1 = 10uF 50v
R1 = 18k ohms

Based on my understanding, that combination of resistor and capacitor
should cycle every 1 second.

I am using a 9V battery instead of the 6V.

When I plug it in, the LED turns on for a flash, and then nothing
happens. The LED is not burning out (I tested it after on a separate
circuit). It looks like the transistor (BC548) is failing, as if I
replace it, the LED will Flash, then nothing.

You can see the specifications for the BC548 Transistor here:

http://www.jameco.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&productId=254781&catalogId=10001&freeText=BC548&app.products.maxperpage=15&storeId=10001&search_type=jamecoall&ddkey=http:ProductDisplay

It says the max collector is 30V, but the max emitter is 5V.

Does anyone see why my circuit is failing? Is it because I using too
many volts for my transistor (9v instead of 5v)?

I realize this is a super basic question, but im really trying to
understand how this works, and how to choose the correct parts for a
circuit.

thanks...

mike