New to me 2008 SDR...first couple of rides.

So the snow has melted and it finally warm enough to throw a leg over my recently purchased 2008 SDR. She's bascially bone stock with the exception of an aftermarket seat and windscreen. I believe he may have thrown a throttle tamer on there as well. Fueling, pipes, and airbox are also stock. I picked it up with only 4000 miles on the clock so I consider myself lucky. I was initially looking for a 2009 Duke because my Harley softail was boring me to death. I wanted something to rip around on when I wasn't cruising my with old lady. Anyway, I spotted the SDR during my search and decided to pull the trigger. After my first ride I was ready to sell it. Based on my prior research I knew the throttle response was going to be bad..but DAMN! It was way worse than I had anticipated. The surging was out of control and straight up dangerous in mid-corner. The suspension is very very stiff but also knew that going into it. Overall, I just wasn't in love with it.

Fast forward to my second and third ride which lasted more than a couple of hours each on twisty Kentucky back roads. Now....I love the SH*T of it!!!! For some reason I barely noticed the snatchy throttle and the suspension was impeccable in the fast sweepers. It's a very intuitive motorcycle in the sense that all I need to do is look through the corner and bike handles the rest. I'm always thinking, "Man, I could have went A LOT faster through that corner." I'm going to have a hard time scrubbing the chicken strips off because she really doesn't need a lot of lean angle to rip through a corner. I'll have to do a track day to really maximum her potential. The throttle is still snatchy but good/smooth throttle control mitigates the surging that could potentially upset the chassis. I really dig this bike and now I understand the cult like following. I can't wait to get to the track so I can embarrass some of the dedicated sportbikes. I'll be looking for a Akras to replace the miserable stock cans so hit me up if you're getting rid of yours. I see lots of members upgrading to the 1290 so I know they're out there. I'm in the Louisville, KY area if anybody happens to live nearby.

If you want to mitigate a large portion of the scratchiness you can run one of the stock smoothed maps from this page:

You would just need a TuneECU cable and the free software.

You can also remove the secondary flies to smoothen out the throttle and engine braking. I liked riding with the snatchy throttle at first since it forces you to stay loose on the bars.

Thanks for the link. I'll definitely use it whenever I get around to remapping the ECU. I'm just going to rip around as-is until I can justify spending more money to smooth her out. Knowing me it'll be sooner than later.

re: the snatchy throttle... I just got used to the bike after a few rides, and now I don't notice it...

I also love my 2008 SDR and snatchy throttle never was a down side to me (had SP1 and RC8 already but thanks to this forum I did couple of mods that changed this bike dramatically. I suggest somewhere during the season or after - remove butterflies and sas and install motohooligan or rotty airbox. After that I went to my local tuner and wasn't impressed on my way to him- was much worst than before, but I knew I need new map. After ECU tuning... Wooooosh!!! OMG, I have new bike again
I was always happy with my Duke since I bought it, but the money spent for above mods were probably best money spent to my Duke ever. Snatchiness is hardly noticeable, it is obviously not IL4 but nothing compared to previous, surge is heavily reduced, is also much, MUCH stronger on mid revs and this fantastic intake noise Love to ride it every single time. I was looking to buy 1290 before that, but now I may keep my 990 for longer, is bit more hooligan bike to me and real head turner as well.

I also forgot to mention that's it's extremely easy to ride, especially when compared to my Ducati 1098 Streetfighter with its vague front end feel. I low sided my Duc twice without any warning from the front end. One second I'm on the bike, the next, I'm on the ground wondering what the hell happened. Not so with the KTM. She drops in nice and predictable and I already full confidence in the front. I know I'm preaching to the choir as you are all well aware of these attributes. I'm just excited about the bike and look forward to dialing her in. Thanks for the advice so far gents. Enjoy your WSBK weekend.

Glad you like it. I love my '07 but it's a different bike to when I bought it.

My list of mods to do in order of preference and the impact they have on the riding experience are:-

Replace the exhaust with either slip-on silencers or a full system (Full-system headers are wider diameter).
SAS removal and airbox replaced with aftermarket one like Moto-hooligan or Rotweiller
Custom map either with PC111/V or other.
Slipper clutch like Sigma or Suter
Quick-shifter like HMRacing
Quick action throttle as OE is quite a long movement from stop to full throttle (will make throttle more violent though)
Rim-tape (essential according to many)

Other things worth doing are:-
2nd gear mod, (standard SD set up is restricted in this gear, not sure about SDR).
Fit remote leads to your battery so top up charge is easy without belly pan removal.
Mod your rear tank hinges, (or get Motohooligan replacements) to alleviate tank swelling problems.
I also would not be without a gear position indicator now. Really useful for track and cruising on motorways so you don't keep changing up in 6th!

All other stuff is cosmetic or personal really.

Speaking of mods...where can i find a service/maintenance manual? I searched the forum and didn't find anything definitive.

Edit: Nevermind. Found it.

I would put suspension set up fairly high on a list of mods.