Have bled plenty of brakes, but these seem a real pain. Do you really have to follow the instructions, or are there any short cuts or tips from anybody who has done it?
the little yellow funnel thing?
Yep, exactly.
They don't have bleed nipples, and I used to just attach a syringe to one end and force fluid through the system, forcing out air as it went. Not so simple, and they don't supply the little yellow funnel thing in the box. Was hoping to ride tomorrow, but having shortened the hoses, they now ned bleeding.
Are you sure there's no bleed nipple, according to Shimano Techdocs there is, not in the usual place, but underneath the caliper where it makes more sense if you're pressure bleeding with a syringe.
I just did mine by following the instructions. It worked superbly. You could try just injecting the fluid up through from the caliper and letting it dribble out of the bleed screw on the lever (use a cloth or something to catch the overflow). Not sure how well it would work but might just be enough to use tomorrow.