Apologies if this has been covered i length already bit I searched on the forum and could not find answers to my questions.

I finally got the bottle to trim down my lengthy brake hoses at the weekend, and now I just need to bleed them. The rear brake pulls right back to the handlebar so I can only assume i got some air in the system, the front brake pulls about half way to the bar (as it did before I cut the hoses).

A few questions:

Should I bleed the front brake as it seems ok?

How do I check if my pads are worn? Both brakes pulled half way to the bars before trimming the cables, previous to this I did a long ride in the wet (very wet) and at the start of the ride I only had to pull the brakes about 10mm before they engaged. Does this mean I have worn my pads on my last ride?

If I need to replace the pads, then with what? The brakes are avid elixir CR's and I am not sure what they come with as stock, I also seem to have 3 OPTIONS, metal organic, organic or sintered?

cheers

I would bleed the rear brake first, as by the sound of things it definitely needs to be done anyway. Then you can use the rear brake as a reference: If after bleeding the rear brake you find that the front brake feels more spongy in comparison, you know that you need to bleed the front too.

To check the pads, I would take them out and have a look at them.

Can anyone advise on organic vs sintered? This thread seems to suggest sintered, especially if I am riding in Scotland. Does that sound about right?

Generally it's; Sintered for wet and wintry conditions, slightly less in the performance stakes but last a lot longer, and Organic for summer conditions or when braking performance is more important than life-span.