Luxury!
Way off topic, but we had an old TRF set built to receive Crystal Palace, and a government surplus RF27 unit in front to tune to Sutton Coldfield when my parents moved up north :o).
I eventually stripped down the old TV for parts, it had two copper plated steel chassis, and a mains direct EHT transformer.
Back on topic, the FT290 I bought was faulty, but easy to work on despite the tightly packed circuits…
The WM5R transistor delayed PTT switch is the KISS answer, if you have an old skool keyer.
The MICE alternative, Make It Complicated Einstein, would be an Arduino software keyer which raises/closes the PTT line a few 10s of milliseconds before closing the dot or dash line and drops it a few hundred mS after no paddle activity.
You could do this with a PIC, or ATTiny85 which is arguably easier to program. Or buy a K1EL 8 pin keyer chip for $10. So many options! So much fun!
Now to my FT290 story. I bought mine from a ham workmate around mid 1990s. It worked wonderfully well and I loved having an all mode 2m rig that was portable and reliable. Then one day I let an external speaker cable short and the audio amp blew its output transistor. So I did the logical thing and gave it an audio coronary bypass by putting an LM386 on a small veroboard which I wrapped with electrical tape and left to rattle around in the battery compartment. It worked fine. I never used it with those old C cell batteries anyway.
Eventually I sold it. I wonder I fessed up to my audio amp hack 
I think this is what the Picokeyer Plus is supposed to do but I couldn’t get it to work. I’ll have another read of the instructions and try again.
I love how it appears so many folks on this reflector probably had or have a 290!
My new-to-me IC-202 has had that done since the unobtanium audio amp committed suicide. However, a nice ham told me he has a several since he uses his 202 to this day and so he stocked up years ago. I may be able to revert it to unmolested state.
The pico keyer just generates a keying line signal from a paddle. It can’t perform the PTT function done by the “standby” line.
The 290 series did not have a vox circuit. The vox (latin for voice) or Voice operated Control was fed a signal that was keyed by the key.
So you have to manually switch from receive to transmit. You are using a radio that had no automatic Rx/Tx changeover when the key was pressed. Unless you use the hints above to build an appropriate alternative circuit, you are stuck with pressing the PTT on the microphone.
I think you are right that the designers didn’t expect many users of CW mode.
73 Andrew VK1DA
a former ft290 user
Fudge. 
Build a circuit it is so. This should be fun… 
Adrian’s key switchy doodah looks good. Rather than key mount and a throw switch, how about a button instead? Press it down and it locks in PTT open, do your CW stuff, press again to release it to the UP position and PTT is off?
Is it as simple as a mono 3.5mm, wired to a button and shoved in the standby jack? Or do I need to start adding all sorts of stuff to it and a rake of components and breadboard etc?
[quote=“VK1DA, post:25, topic:39514”]I
think you are right that the designers didn’t expect many users of CW mode.[/quote]
We’ll call it Yaesu’s British Leyland “that’ll do” moment. 
Yes! Any switch you have handy. It might be a bit of a faff when you are working down a pile up at three or four contacts a minute, though 
NICE! I’m going to make one asap so! Is the 3.5mm jack mono or will stereo be alright? I’m totally doing this!
As for working a pile up on 2m CW, I imagine a 2m CW pile up averages around 3 to 4 contacts every 6 months or so, not 3 to 4 contacts per minute!*
*but I’m on a crusade to change this! 
Probably something like that! Back in the 80s things were more lively, there were many people interested in high speed CW for MS work, and for contrast, low speed CW for Ar! Low speed because the buzzing tone of auroral scatter and Doppler spread are not easy to get used to. All this was a bit esoteric for me, I was mainly interested in DXing on SSB and with a 290 and a 25 watt linear plus an 8 element yagi I got a fair share!
I have a distinct impression that tropo openings were more frequent in those days, but hindsight wears rose tinted spectacles!
Several years ago I was at the local club auction night, and one of the last items was a 290R1 in pretty bad condition, it had obviously been dropped from a great height, the antenna was dangling from a hole and the case and front panel had parted company due to a broken lug. I got it for a fiver. I replaced the antenna with a BNC socket glued over the hole and I glued a solder tag to replace the lug. A session with a trimming tool and it works again: the panel light has died and I will probably add an led in its place. It sits on a shelf as a memento of a great decade of 2m fun, it won’t see much use, the FT817ND is more convenient to use and in years to come will be an equally well-loved classic, but despite that I love the little beggar!
I couldn’t wait to try out Adrian’s solution so remembered I made up some momentary push switch morse keys which might work as a PoC.
I plugged it in to the standby port, removed the Yaesu mic to make sure there were no cameras, mirrors, trapdoors or David Copperfield’s knocking about the gaf and gave it a try.
It works!
Tried with my beloved bathtub key, no problem. You can also see the key transmitting the break in that the PTT would be doing, as shown by the red On Air LED illuminated.
I then upped my game a bit and tried connecting a VK3IL paddle I made to my Picokeyer Plus.
It works!
Top tip though if you are using a paddle (or a straight key for that matter). Turn off the lamp unless you want people to think you are holding a warehouse acid house party! The strobing is not fun!
So now I just need to get a surface mount on/off rocker switch, wire it up to a 3.5mm jack (stereo works as well as I proved here though I only have one channel and ground wired) and pop it in to the standby jack!
It is cumbersome but I don’t see any other way around it at the minute. Cheers Adrian for the inspiration!
Bonus note: Is it just me, or is the side tone of the FT-290R magnificent? I love it!
That is why this thread is here. Everyone (well, almost everyone) seems to love the FT-290R. She’s a beaut!
Yep!
Now I would like to get hold of a good example of the FT-225RD, a classic desk top multimode from the same period.
The more I read up on the FT-290R the more I get the overwhelming sense that back in the day folks went absolutely nuts for these.
The amount of mods, hacks and general pottering probably has something to do with it. In 2025 I’m only just discovering the 290R, but it’s such a nice radio. Glad I got the repair work done and saved it from the scrapheap!
I will get Adrian’s CW mod finished asap. Next I wonder if you can make a mini mic like the @K6ARK for it, obviously needing the Yaesu mic connector though, so might be a tall order.
Or is it? If you can get a 7 pin DIN connector, can you not just wire up PTT, Mic and GND?
I loved using my 290. Unfortunately, the liquid crystal display on mine has died and I’ve been unable to find a replacement. I know some people have built display replacements using PIC controllers etc so might have to go down that route at some point.
Thanks. I might give that a go. I’ve done very little with Arduino, which always makes me nervous but it looks a well-supported project.
How about an FT-290R with a snazzy OLED display?
Last time I looked at that specific option, it was just a design concept. Looks like you can buy it ready to install now. Thank you so much for posting this 
I hope you have success with it. It looks a good option. I might get one as a backup just for when my one inevitably dies.
I got those parts ordered for Adrian’s snazzy CW idea. I have a surface mount rocker switch with enclosure, pre wired, and a pack of 90º mono 3.5mm jacks.
I’ll trim the rocker switch wiring right down, hook it up to the jack and then pop some velcro on the enclosure.
Hopefully that will do the job. Still awkward, but probably the best you are going to get. Unless you can find a way to do an internal automatic mod of some sort.
The footswitch idea is appealing, but I wouldnt want to shove the pedal in mud or wet ground. Hence the ‘Adrian mod’ seems the better option I think.
So why don’t you ust use the PTT on the mic instead of all this faffing?
It’s a standard 7-pin mic connector as used on plenty of radios until someone decided to abuse RJ45 ethernet connectors for low-profile mic connectors. c.f. 7 Pin Microphone Connector Mike Plug Mic (GX16-7) Fits Yaesu FT-290R | eBay UK
Because it’s more fun to come up with other ideas than use the Yaesu mic and a paddle in the other. It’s like trying to operate CW while wearing oven mitts! 
I guess you could hold the PTT down with your nose, or some sort of novelty pointy finger sellotaped to a wooden spoon attached to a GoPro bite mount?
This is what AI came up with:
Can’t argue with that, it’s about right!
