Basil Tour XL Double Bicycle Bag (Black/Silver) Review

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(More customer reviews)Having just bought this based on various pictures and no tangible reviews, aside from "Basil is a good brand" on various bicycling forums, I have to say I'm somewhat disappointed. There are a few issues with this item.
First, the bags are attached to each other, this I knew. However, what I didn't have any way to tell is that the spacing between them is about 3" more wide than the width of my fairly standard rack. There is no way to shorten this distance, short of physically modifying the bags, which I'm able, but not willing, to do. As such, the bags hang over the sides of the rack a good bit, causing them to tip out toward the sides and pushing the bottom of the
Secondly, the bags attach with straps and a cinch-style fastener, like the type found on the bottom of back-pack straps. The lower attachment point attaches with only a strip of velcro, rather than bungies and a hook, which makes it a pain to attach. I'd either be ok with a semi-permanent, but rock-solid attachment system, or a less-solid, but easily removable one. This bag had neither.
Lastly, the buckles used to hold the top closed are made from a very thin, very soft plastic. Within the first trip to the store, loaded with a gallon of milk on one side and a few random, light items, and a bag of flour on the other with more random, light items, the clasp cracked when buckling the top closed. I don't know if it was previously cracked or not, but it is certainly very thin and flimsy plastic. I'd hardly think less than 20lbs per side should be an issue, seeing as the volume of these bags is quite large, 15-30lbs per side is a reasonable guess for the amount of weight they should be able to carry safely, otherwise you'd have to leave them mostly empty to avoid putting more than a few pounds in each side.
I bought this item to carry small amounts of groceries home, and it is not at all suited for such tasks. Being unable to easily remove it, combined with it not at all fitting the top width of a fairly standard rack make this item sub-par. I'm not sure what would be an ideal usage for it, but anything that involves loading more than 2-5lbs per side will lead to frustration, as will trying to mount it on a standard sized rack w/o heavy modification, or buying a hard-to-find European style rack with a much wider top.
For those looking for a grocery-getting, this is the best I've found so far: Basil Cardiff Rear Basket, Black. Slides on, slides off, take it right in the store, load it up (and know when you run out of room easier), then take it right into the kitchen when you get home. Will post a review of said item when I get it in, but I'm quite sure it will be vastly superior for getting groceries.

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