You need to pull the hydro when bleeding them (or so i was told) When i bled mine on my e30 i went like this 1)get friend to open bleed nipple 2)press pedal to floor and hold there 3)pull hydro all the way back 4)get friend to close nipple 5)release pedal and hydro 6)repeat from step 1. Then when i was driving i would drag the hydro lightly for 10 seconds to get some heat in the rear brakes and it would work nice and easy, quick sharp jabs is what you want to do, just a slow pull. I always just used a small handle swell, probably only 12" tall. No point going too big, as it will ultimately give you more leverage, but will mean to have to pull it a lot further to get the desired movement on the pistol, so you won't be getting that sharp, quick motion you need.
I use a pressure bleeder, slow press/releases on the brake/hydro in all kinds of combinations, with long pauses at the stoppers. Starting to think I may have a very subtle leak somewhere which is allowing air in but not fluid out, but that's a little counterintuitive? I have read about cycling the ABS valves by jumping two of the ASC relay connectors which works, although rather than just doing it a few times I think I may need to leave it going during a full bleed. Slightly concerned it may overheat and die in the process?
