<p>I'm starting a project which I think would benefit from bindings (I've got a source list table, several browser views, etc), but I think it would also be quite doable, and perhaps more understandable, without them. From my limited experience I've found bindings to be difficult to troubleshoot and very "magic" (e.g. it's difficult to insert logging anywhere to figure out where stuff is breaking, everything either works or it doesn't).</p>

<p>Is this just my inexperience talking (in which case I could sit down and spend some time just working on my understanding of bindings and expect things to start becoming clearer/easier) or would I be better off just writing all the glue code myself in a manner which I was sure I could understand and troubleshoot.</p>

Bindings can seem magical in nature. To understand the magic behind bindings, I think one must understand KVC/KVO thoroughly. I really do mean thoroughly.
However, in my case (new to Obj-C -- 9 months), once I got KVC/KVO bindings was a thrill. It has significantly reduced my glue code and made my life significantly easier. Debugging bindings became a case of making sure my key-value changes were observable. I find that I am able to spend more time writing what my app is supposed to do rather than making sure the view reflects the data.
I do agree though that bindings is highly intimidating at first.