BigChief 

I have MKS pedals on my roadster and was thinking half clips might work for me but I've never had a chance to try them. I'm used to straps on my road bike, but I was hoping half clips might be a little less shoe fussy. What are they like to use?

thumpism 

They work. My wife had them on her bike and they used to be fairly popular in the '80s. Have not seen them for years. They locate your foot but there is no retention as there would be with a full clip and strap. Also, I think they are all size Medium, so you might have to space them out if you have larger feet.

lotekmod

I have a pair that I used for awhile on my commuter bike. I felt they were ok for keeping my feet from slipping forward on the crappy pedals I had, but then I finally got a decent pair of MKS Sylvan touring pedals and never bothered putting the half clips on them. The MKS pedals with decent rubber soled shoes have good enough grip and I don't have to deal with flipping the pedal up all the time in stop and go commuting. I guess my opinion now is the half clips are not a great solution. You still have to deal with the pedal flip up like full toe clips but you don't get all the benefits of really securing your foot.

Vefer

I use them all the time! The Chrome Velo Orange ones on the road bikes and the black nylon Delta ones ones on the mtn bikes. I wear a size 13 and need to space them out 1/4" with plastic spacers on some pedals. I've never used clipless or only used straps one time and just could get used to it. But these do keep your feet on the pedals when spinning at higher RPM and over bumps. I started using them after I had spun a rear tire going up a wet hill on a mtn bike and my foot came off and the crank came around and hit the back of my leg. That hurt enough to never do it again.

nlerner

I tried the V-O ones for a bit but didn't like them at all. They didn't offer much in the way of foot retention, and I also felt that they were uncomfortable. Of course, I also at this point don't have full toe clips on any bike, just SPDs or platforms.

3speedslow

Yes, like others have said, I did not like the feeling of not having my foot secured to the pedal.

Vintage_Cyclist

I use plastic Zefal half clips on my local errand schlepper, since I'm using regular street shoes/sneakers on it. These are stiff enough that you get some benefit on the up-stroke of your pedal motion.

arex

I use MKS half-clips with MKS GR9 pedals...works well for me.

Prowler 

I'll call em 'cages' to avoid the clip/clipless drudgery. All my summer bikes have toe cages and straps - metal cages with leather straps. These all work real well for me. My winter/salty roads bike has metal half cages and they work real well for me too. I wear a bit larger (warmer) leather tennis shoe for this winter riding and they fit the half cages just fine and the cages provide good retention. I like them but will stay with full metal cages for the "9 month' bikes.

I've tried plastic half cages and was not impressed. Took them off - did not hold my foot like the metal half cages do. Cannot recommend them.

Reynolds 

I use them on one of my dirt bikes because they keep your foot on the pedal when you hit a bump, yet you can still use common sneakers.

BigChief 

What's happening here is my DL-1 is geared, 46x22, a bit on the low side. Handy in a headwind, but I'm finding myself pedaling a bit over my usual tempo to reach a cruising speed I'm happy with. At the faster tempo, chain snatch gets more pronounced and pedal contact feels more unbalanced. I don't think I need much lift. No hills to climb here in Southern Florida, but I'm thinking a bit of lift might make the higher tempo more comfortable. Thing is, I want to be able to hop on and ride with any sneakers I got on sale at Cosco. The straps on my Motobecane are very particular about shoes.

thumpism 

I submit we rename them after their German name, Fusshaken ("foot hooks").

blakcloud

I used the Bruce Gordon half clips on White Industries pedals on my commuting bike. It was a good combination. Easy to get into and they just put your foot where you need it.

I don't use them anymore, don't see the need for my application so I have two pairs of pedals and half clips sitting in my parts bin. They are just too nice to sell or give away.

top506

My daughter's used them since I I built up her first road bike a decade ago.

Top

rumrunn6

try a set & see how you like them

been using them on all my bikes for 9+ years. hard to find them large enough for my big feet. lately these are my favs & I bought 3 sets this fall & winter. they are regular clips I just toss the straps and break off the top part w a bench vise. there is no left or right. I too add a DIY spacer so my foot placement is where I like it, even w shoe covers. I particularly like them going fast down hill. I get out of the saddle a little to lower my center of gravity & point my toes down a little. a very secure feeling. since there are no straps & I'm not locked in it's easy to bail if I have to dump the bike. works for me, ya know? if you're fine without anything now but want to experiment with a little something to keep your feet in place, sounds like a worth while experiment. I'm not a spinner but I understood what you were explaining. I have them on 3 bikes right now, 2 hybrids & my main road bike. I can use fisherman sandals, sneakers, stiff walking shoes, larger hiking shoes & the same w rubber shoe covers. nice to have those options

Vintage Cyclist's Zefal half clips look like they have a nice big toe box

like I said these are ones I'm using now
MKS Twin toe clips, steel - large/deep
Sold by: Bikewagon
$17.99

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

this is what they look like before I break off the top part that holds the strap


this is what they look like when I have them set up for my personal use (not all my pedals are these old :/)


the spacers are particularly useful w my big shoes & rubber covers (I actually re-did the spacers & made them a little longer) Like I said there is no left or right. I confirmed that because they come w an "L" on both of them. weird


pretty easy to flip the pedal w my toe to get the foot in place. barely think about it, especially w smooth bottomed sneakers. the knarly bottomed hiking shoes on some pedals take an extra thought to get them in, but no biggie. with the rubber shoe covers, it takes two extra thoughts

but like I said, it's a cinch to bail if you want to dump the bike. here I broke thru some ice & lost too much control to stay on it so I dumped it but I didn't go down, just hopped off. easy peasy

SJX426 

I put them on the tandem for my wife as a first step to attaching shoes to pedals. Its working.

Kobe 

I like the look of this. I will need to make one because my full cages could use a little more forward adjustment.

rumrunn6

hardware store. could only find plastic / nylon? sleeves (forget what they were labeled) used a bench vise & hacksaw to cut. also had to get some longer (but not too long) screws & some washers

bradtx

@BigChief, I'm not nearly as comfortable with half clips as some of the other posters. The only way to know how you'll feel about them is to try a pair for awhile.

Brad

Iowegian

I use plastic half clips on my grocery-getter since it helps me not have to worry about my feet slipping off the pedals. I'm not sure they would help much at a high cadence but you should try that for yourself to see.

I find the clips I use are somewhat shoe-specific and different shoes fit differently into them. Of course, some of my shoes are Hoka One-One's with over 1/2" of foam under the sole so that's an extreme case.

crank_addict

Same here. Excellent for the stoker, especially for those who've rarely ridden a tandem or newby. Provides a good feel of security but also important they keep the feet on. If without clips and their foot slipped out, suppose the captain is unaware and continues pedaling, it could make for some hurt.

Though if I ride it solo, have to temporary twist wire the pedal. This to prevent the toe-clip from nicking the ground.

gaucho777 

@crank_addict, what type are those half-clips? (Sweet tandem & T.A. cranks, too.)

I'd like to get some for my daughter to introduce her to clips without worrying about her toppling over at a stop. She tends to spin along in a too-low gear and also puts her feet in odd positions on the pedals, occasionally slipping off. Half-clips would help with both safety and positioning.

DIMcyclist

I use them on my commuter bikes.

I used to use plastic clips but they snapped often enough that I got tired of replacing them, and switched to metal clips for their durability. I initially used VO's 1/2-clips, but then switched to MKS/ Deep because they're a bit taller. Flatter clips are Okay if you only wear sneakers or other street shoes, but the Velo Orange clips are really too flat for use with trail-runners & other hiking footwear since they gouge & cut into leather & rubber of the toe-caps (and I don't know about you, but personally, I don't dig having a new pair of $150 trail shoes ruined after a single ride- and through town, no less- not even on trail). I haven't had that trouble with MKS clips.

crank_addict

gaucho777
^thanks. The clips are Kyokuto.

Having this pedal arrangement certainly eased any apprehension. cheer's

HamboneSlim

I've used half clips on all my bikes since the early 70s. Works for me. MKS and Zefal make them in different sizes for different types of shoes.

The easiest to slip in and out of are the large plastic Zefals on MKS pedals on my PR10: