Hi Dan, hopefully this will help you out in a more traditional fashion :thumbup
Bleeding The System
Open the bleed nipple slowly - you should only need half a turn and at the same time slowly and smoothly squeeze the brake lever in (or push the pedal). Hold the lever in and you should see air bubbles or fluid being expelled into the jar. Old brake fluid can be any colour from dirty white to brown or black. Movement of fluid and/or bubbles will continue for a second or two, close the nipple and then release the brake lever.
Check the fluid level in the reservoir and top up if necessary. Repeat this operation until no more bubbles appear and the fluid coming out is clear. Keep the master cylinder topped up.
If you have a twin system repeat this process with the other caliper (it's best to do the furthest away from the master cylinder first) if everything has gone okay you should now have a brake system with a good solid feel to it, the lever will travel a short distance and then a solid resistance will stop it moving any further.
If when you continue to apply pressure you get a slow movement or spongy feel to the lever it's a good sign that there is still air in the system. There are a number of possibilities not least that you didn't get all of the air out of the system so you should start bleeding again. Tighten all parts to the correct torque setting and then check the whole system to see that the lines are not trapped on full lock, no fluid leaks from anywhere etc.
Troubleshooting
Not all calipers have their bleed nipples at the highest point on their anatomy. This means that if there is a small pocket of air trapped above the nipple it will be hard to remove (air always goes to the highest point of the area it is in) and make the system spongy. You can get around this by taking the caliper off and making sure the nipple is at the highest point but remember to put a spacer in between the pads to stop the pistons popping out and making it easier to refit the caliper.
A similar problem occurs with some racing bikes which have steeply angled handle bars - the brake hose arches up above the master cylinder and a small pocket of air can get trapped here. Again you can rearrange the layout or you could inject brake fluid using a syringe very carefully and slowly in through the bleed nipple in the caliper bearing in mind that the fluid in the reservoir may overflow. Fitting a banjo bolt which incorporates a bleed nipple to the master cylinder and bleeding this first before the rest of the system is another way to fix this problem.
If you are unable to remove the sponginess no matter how carefully you bleed the system you may have a sealing problem which you will need to consult your local dealer about. The master cylinder is fed from the reservoir by a tiny hole and this hole easily gets blocked which is why cleanliness is so important when bleeding brakes. If you cannot bleed your brakes yourself make sure you talk to your local dealer and get them to do it for you. Don't be tempted to use any of the 'self bleed' gadgets unless you really have to. These products allow the nipple to be kept open as they incorporate a non return valve to stop air re-entering the system. But the bleed nipple has a threaded end which screws into the caliper - air can be sucked into the caliper along this route if the nipple is loose in the threaded part of the caliper - it will only be a small amount but why do it in the first place as we are trying to remove air...
When you have successfully bled your brakes make sure both bleed nipples are done up tightly, all banjo bolts are done up tightly to the torque settings laid out below and top up the master cylinder reservoir with fresh brake fluid to the required level. Most oem reservoirs have an upper and lower limit shown on the reservoir itself. Do not overfill the reservoir as this can cause hydraulic locking of the system preventing the pistons in the caliper from fully retracting - this causes binding of the brakes.
