https://www.mouser.com/ds/2/149/SS8050-117753.pdf
This illustrates the point I was trying to get at. How do you know what you have with so little information?
I have several of these and know two things about them.
1. The base is on pin 3
2. The gain is about 30-33 with Ib from <40uA-80uA and began to fall off above 80uA
No spec sheet I could find matches what I know about this transistor.
I don't know if the datasheet was a match for your device. I used the Package type and the base number you gave me to narrow it down.
Most of my knowledge comes from searching for part information when I was fixing something. I looked where it was in the circuit and what it did.
I also noticed there are A, B, C and D variants. Is that what the C in the lower left corner means? Does the C mean collector?
Not necessarily.
Some hints:
Look for manufacture logos.
Transistors are broken into three Market regions, Americas, Europe, and Japan. So they usually abbreviate just the base number.
BTW: I wouldn't use random salvage parts for any of my projects. I would just buy a bunch of jelly bean components and buy special components when required.
For repairs I would just use ECG/NTE cross-reference components, (grab a NTE Cross Reference Book as a reference guide).
As you look at more components you will get the hang of it.