If yes, are there any positive attributes over a shoe/pedal system?

Yup Me... Advantages...Cheaper than shoes/pedals...You can wear watever u want on your feet,(I wear Sandals a Lot) You don't "Clack" walkin into Mickey D's,You Can move your foot to another position (Like from Ball to Arch) jus by flippin the pedal over. But They are a bit Harder to get your foot out of in a hurry,Takes a bit o pratice Otherwise...I like em

They don't malfunction

Its not cause I'm cheap.
I actually run TIMEs most of the time now, but I'll still run clips and straps sometimes.

I rode with them, and even raced [once] with toe clips up until '93. I couldn't ride with any shoe I wanted to, since the clip part only allowed a certain depth of shoe to fit in snugly, but other than that, they were okay. Oh, except for the shin and calf gouging caused by missing the pedals from time to time. I had to switch back to toe clips in '97 because the sole of my clipless shoes ripped off. The only reason I wasn't the last guy up every climb was through sheer force of will and some pretty stellar fitness. As soon as I got new shoes, I abandoned the clip/strap for good. If I don't want to ride in my clipless shoes, I just ride on the SPD's. It's pretty easy.

are you kidding? I have seen tons of those clips that have had those straps fail, and those buckles broken.

I dont use toe-straps, i think they are dangerous.

edit: i like your titus

I personally feel that SPD's are far superior. I ran toe clips for several years because I thought it was insane to "clip in" to your pedals. I have found it much easier to get my feet out of SPD's than toe clips and straps. To be able to make the most of toe clips, I needed to reach down and really tighten the strap every time I put my feet in them.

I have never had SPD failure. I never want to change the position of my foot from the ball to instep. If the pedal is in the instep of your foot, you don't get the extra power from your calf muscles.

I used clips and straps on my mountain bikes , for about 12 years , and loved them . In 2000 I got a set spuds , and would never change back .

I would agree that toeclips can be dangerous in technical downhill runs. I used them in my first several years before biting the bullet on clipless. There's a bit of a learning curve with clipless, but that's true with toeclips as well. Been riding clipless for 10+ years in some of the nastiest technical rocky terrain and never had a problem clipping out when I need to. I use them on both my XC FS bike and my DH bike and can't imagine riding without them.

I read a post describing how a certain pedal didn't have enough rollover. What does this refer to? The width of the pedal?

ditched them after some low hanging tree shoots/roots of some sort got caught in them and sent me flying into my handlebar. they can be dangerous not because your feet are stuck to the pedal, but because the toestrap gets caught in the foliage.

I don't quite understand how that would happen, they should be snugly around your foot and if any foliage get's between your foot and the clips, maybe they weren't tight enough. Unless you're talking about having them dangle below the pedal while you use the flat side.

You do know that SPD sandals have been around for a while , and that you can buy pedals with a platform on one side and SPD stuff on the other, right?

I rock both daily. One bike has clips the other doesn't. Personally I don't think one is better than the other. Some times I like a skater shoe and clips, others I run the SPDs and clipless shoes. Depends on the mood. For toe clips keep the straps snug and zip tie any ends up under the pedal. I like them because I feel they are low maintenance. Not that clipless are all that hard to adjust, clean, etc. but toe clips are 2 bolts, a clip and a strap. After you get used to them you can dismount no prob. I can get out of my clips as fast as my clipless and its pretty darn fast.

Craig