No, im running of a 9v battery.
The first pic i posted, is a flipped view of the one i just recently posted. Its confusing I know, All the components on the first pic are the wrong way around, because they do not need to be flipped, as they will be on the other side of the board anyway. I just included them so you get a rough idea of whats what.
Im just going to leave the circuit on with 0 pot resistance until battery dies, and see if another chip blows.
thanks everyone for your suggestions.