Service of Hugi 240 MTB Freehub
 

I dropped of my Bontrager (Hugi 240s) wheel set of for overhaul since I did not have the necessary tools to do the work myself. According to my lbs, the bearing in the freehub (rotor in Hugi words) needs to be replaced and they told me that I have to get a whole new freehub. Does anyone know if it is possible to service the freehub itself? The Hugi service manual for the hub states that the freehub should be replaced with a new or reconditioned if it is damaged.

/Dave

It may be the star ratchet that needs replacing. If you've had any "skipping" of the freehub under load, then I would suspect this is the case. Unfortunately the Hugi require the use of bearing pullers when servicing. They sell a tool to service their hubs, but it WHOLESALED for $80, so I just said NO! If your LBS doesn't have the proper tool, they won't be able to disassemble the freehub body or pull the worn cartridge bearings.
I've gone through three DT/Hugi hubs on my mtn. tandem and have had enough with the newer, quieter design. (The star ratchets blew out under high torque.)
However, the older Union/Hugi design has lasted over twelve years on our road tandem, so if you have that one, I think it's worth reconditioning. And I've had good luck with the Hugi Compact on my single, but I think it's the Union Hugi as well.

The freehub is not skipping at all but feels a bit rough. Acoording to the manual it is not "too" complicatd to clean out the star ratchet mechanism but my problem is the bearing in the freehub has siezed up. Since the ratchet mechanism is separate from the freehub i figured it should easy to just replace the bearing, but maybe not. I surtainly hope that my Lbs has the required Hugi hub kit otherwice they would have some serious problems replacing the bearings like you said.

I think the hubs are the newer type (DT/Hugi) (2003) but i am not sure about being quiet, this hub has a very loud ratched mechanism compared to other hubs.

/DK

That's good the star ratchet is OK. So it's a simple matter of pulling and replacing the cartridge bearing. Should be relatively straight-forward.
Believe it or not, you have the QUIET Hugi! The Union/Hugi model was even louder! They had lots of complaints from customers, so they lowered the ramp heights on the ratchet and perhaps changed the spring tension. It's better not but can't withstand the high torque loads the old ones could.