Changing tires

Cambié los neumáticos traseros al salir de Paraguay en marzo de 2025, pero los delanteros se cambiaron por última vez en junio de 2024 en Santa Fe, Argentina.

He recorrido unos 18.000 km desde entonces y los neumáticos delanteros muestran signos de desgaste y deslizamiento.

After this, I’ll be passing through the Valdes Peninsula and the dirt roads of Los 73 Malditos, where I’ll change my tires.

Luckily, I’m in Argentina, so I was able to buy some at Mercado Libre.

I bought my usual Brazilian Rinaldi.

The price was AR$98.395, or about USD66.

It arrived in two days.

Well, when I went to replace it I discovered a crack in the rear wheel block

I’ve only driven about 8,000 km since I replaced the rear tire, so there’s still tread left, but I’m going to replace it just to be safe.

I bought it at a parts shop in Neuquén.

It’s Vee Rubber from Thailand, AR$168,000, or about USD113.

It’s a little more expensive than Rinaldi, but I’ve heard it performs better.

I needed a 120/80/18 tire, but they only had 120/90/18 here, which means the tire’s profile is higher.

I’m not sure how this will affect the ride quality of the motorcycle.

If I had purchased it at the same time as the front wheel, it would have been about USD20 cheaper.

I regret not buying it at Mercado Libre.

I’ll start by replacing the front wheel.

The last time I worked on a front wheel was in September 2024, when I got a flat tire on my way from Potosi, Bolivia, to Sucre.

The pantograph jack I bought in El Alto, Bolivia, will come in handy here.

The front wheel is thin, so the work is easy.

There’s noticeable rust on the spokes, but I’ll pretend I didn’t notice it.

I quickly completed the replacement.

When I compared the tires, I noticed that the center section was also quite worn.

I’d already driven 18,000 km.

Now, next up is the rear wheel.

Here too, I use a pantograph jack to lift the swingarm.

I removed the tire and found another tear.

While I was working on it, I noticed one spoke was loose.

It had broken at the base, so I quickly went out to buy a new one.

In Argentina, we have the siesta system, so situations like this are a real pain for me.

I found a shop that was open, but they only had original Honda parts, and each one cost AR$3,000, or about 2 USD.

Expensive!

They’re original, after all…

I’ve completed the replacement.

Even with them lined up, they still have 2,000km to go, so it would be a shame to replace them.

I did a quick test drive and confirmed there were no issues.

I’m heading to Las Grutas, about 420km away, so I’m hoping there won’t be any issues along the way.

Work date: October 24, 2025