Baoer 507 Eight Horses Review

[Funkmon]

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51EPvxy4wML._SL1500_.jpg

The Baoer 507 Eight Horses pen. Guess how many horses are on the metal body. That’s right! Six.

I got this pen for like $2 because I got lucky in an eBay auction. I have other Baoer pens, but this is one of the best. I got lucky in the nib as well. Some of them can arrive damaged and not work right, or some of them can be scratchy. The quality control is abysmal. But, like I said, I got lucky here. In much the same way as my other recent review, this is also on a blog with a slightly more digestible format.

You may be noticing the Chinese writing on this pen and wonder what that’s about with a company name like Baoer. Well, Baoer is a Chinese company. You wouldn’t know it otherwise, but they do something few western companies do: they stamp their name on a lot of stuff, not just the nib or in a subtle way in the back like on a Parker. This bad boy has Baoer and their logo printed twice in a big ass gold ring at the top of the cap, AND on the nib. Subtle! I’ve had the pen for a while and have been using it for a backup when my beloved Frontier runs out of ink at school due to me being poor at managing that type of stuff. People stare at this mother, or I’d use it a bit more.

Let’s do the quick review.

Performance: 9/10. This pen never leaks, never skips, and is a smooth writer. It’s easily the best performing Chinese pen I own. Yes, that includes Jinhaos, you weirdos who are such big fans of those pens. You know, I have never had a Jinhao work for me very well. They are all hard starters, are too dry, and skip all the time. Those pens suck. Anyway, this one’s great. I’ve literally never had it skip. It writes a great medium fine line that is usable almost anywhere, even for me, someone who really likes big fat…wet…juicy…mmm… Er…right. Even for me, someone who prefers a broad nibbed pen.

While writing with the pen, I haven’t gotten cramped or anything, despite what I would call a subpar grip section. It’s not subpar in size or design, just feel. It feels like the cheapest possible grip section they could have done. Possibly even cheaper than a flat plastic thing. The ribbing is atrocious. I can’t quite explain it. Despite this, the pen is extremely well balanced and adjusted. I don’t post this pen, because I’m not a blithering idiot.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsesline.jpg?w=640&h=123

Some lines written by the 507 with a few comparisons. Yes, that’s an Impressa with a bold line leaving a thinner line than a Parker with an M. I can’t explain it either.

Appearance: 8/10. It gets really high marks for basically looking like a Pelikan M200, but with a much cooler body of the pen. The details on the picture are superb, and also fun to look at. That’s also not plastic, either. That’s metal. What kind of metal, I don’t know, but golly it’s definitely metal. Mine is silver, but it also comes in copper and gold colours, both of which are very pleasant to look at. When other people see the pen and ask to take a look at it, they hold it and examine it much longer than my other pens because there’s so much to look at on this one. However, despite the fact that there is a lot to look at on this pen, because it’s just embossed on the metal with no additional colours, it doesn’t look as gaudy as it might, nor indeed as busy and noisy as it might look otherwise. This pen is perfectly usable in a business meeting while still maintaining a lot of personality.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsespen.jpg?w=640&h=175

Da pen. Can you see how we might mistake it for an M200?

http://i.imgur.com/DdqNnc3.jpg

What about now?

The only part that breaks down is when you look at the smaller parts of the pen. The clip looks nice, as an inverted Pelikan M200 clip, but the band at the top with the brand name is tacky and really is different from the rest of the pen. That sucks. Also, the ribbed plastic grip section is made out of terrible and cheap plastic that doesn’t look like anything in particular, and feels as cheap as it looks. Furthermore, the gold touches around the grip have corroded and now look like they have been dipped in a pile of poop and left to sit there for a while. I don’t take very good care of this pen, so there is a chance that it’s just ink from the pen getting on the gold and ruining it. But, then, why wouldn’t it do that on the nib? Probably because the nib is actually gold plated and the other pieces of metal are just coloured gold. I can’t really explain it, so I won’t try.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsescap.jpg?w=640&h=273

Nice looking cap, until you hit the big BAOER and that weird logo. No, you can’t rip it off. I’ve tried.

That nib, on the other hand, is pretty attractive. Many gold plated two toned nibs have a lot of decoration on them, but the Baoer nib just has the name and maintains the line theme they have going on from the grip section and the clip in the non gold part. Pretty decent.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsesnib.jpg?w=640&h=598

Here we can see the otherwise good looking nib, the terrible grip, and also the gold plating (bleep) that’s come over. It seriously looks like I dripped toilet bowl cleaner on a yellow piece of paper. Terrible.

Build Quality: 8/10. Despite that (bleep) with the gold plating flaking off, the rest of the pen is built extremely well. It weighs about 30 grams, in line with almost metal pens of this size. It’s also about the same size as the rest of them, too. I must keep returning to that crappy plastic grip, though. Man, that takes it down a point. And, the easily removed gold in the grip area, too. That’s rough. But, there’s a chance that it’s just because I don’t take very good care of a pen I paid $2 for.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsescomparison.jpg?w=640&h=733

Here we can see our 507 with, from left to right, a Baoer 388, a Parker Frontier, a Jinhao 1200, itself, and a Monteverde Impressa, a pen I’m totally all over.

Refilling and maintenance: 7/10. This pen has international cartridge support and comes with a converter that’s actually really good. But, this is just standard at this point. It’s hard to get the nib and feed out of the pen, and, while the nib appears that it might be a #5, and therefore kind of easily replaceable, it’s not ideal. But, I wouldn’t replace it anyway.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsesunscrewed.jpg?w=640&h=210

Here’s the pen unscrewed, so you can see the converter and whatnot. Yes. I am the guy who will leave the sticker on the screw part of his converter. There is a chance that that sticker will never come off. It’s already lost most of its adhesive properties.

My dad leaves the plastic film on his phones and his computers…for years. I took his Samsung Galaxy S 3 out of its case to fix something, and let him know it was still on the screen. What the hell, man.

Value: 9/10. Yeah, I paid $2 for it, but they seem to run closer to $7 on eBay. Now, while that’s cheap for western pen companies, it is somewhere in the middle of the road for Chinese pens. As such, the finish isn’t very good, and you can kind of feel the cheapness somehow, even compared to other Chinese pens. But, if you ignore that, and focus on the big things, like its performance and weight, the pen’s actually a pretty good value.

Conclusion: 8.7/10. Not an average. The pen is really good, and really cheap. But it’s not remarkable in any particular way. Hence, I feel like giving this guy an 8.7. Yeah. What’re you going to do?

Here’s some terrible writing.

http://funkmonpens.files.wordpress.com/2014/04/horsessample.jpg?w=283&h=300

[a_m]

If you look very carefully there are eight horses. Some horses are only partially visible as their body is hidden behind other horses. I have three of these in different metallic finish.

 

Nice review.

[Charles Rice]

$2.00 - can't go wrong there.

 

but how much was shipping?

[richardandtracy]

Given the denigration of Jinhao in the review, it may come as a surprise that Baoer is a sub-brand of Jinhao.

 

However, it sounds like a nice pen, thanks for the review.

 

Richard

[n1019]

I just received one of these from China, also finding it a good performer straight out of the box. The nib is not as smooth or wet as a Jinhao X450/750 but slightly finer, without being scratchy.

It has some heft; I can write comfortably without posting the cap. Mine cost $7.99 including postage.

 

 

It’s easily the best performing Chinese pen I own. Yes, that includes Jinhaos, you weirdos who are such big fans of those pens. You know, I have never had a Jinhao work for me very well. They are all hard starters, are too dry, and skip all the time. Those pens suck.

 

My Jinhao X450 and X750 have wetter, smoother nibs than the Baoer 507, more true to their medium width classification. They are excellent. However, I still consider the 507 to be a decent pen, worth the money.

 

I just picked up my X750 and started writing after it had been in a cupboard for about a week to test it out. It started laying down ink after about 5 mm of contact with the paper.

Edited April 24, 2014 by n1019

[Funkmon]

I picked up my Jinhao 500 after it had been sitting for 9 hours and it leaked all over my pants.

Edited April 29, 2014 by Funkmon

[Gloucesterman]

Cost of pen - $2.00!

Cost and inconvenience to clean your pants - PRICELESS!

 

Of course you did take it to the Chinese laundry, right?

 

Maybe it's a conspiracy - :unsure:

[Thier.]

I have to admit that I sometimes use those chinese pens ....Jinhao X450 and 750, Baoer and Hero are fine pens that cost nearly nothing . Of course, I prefer my Graf, Sheaffer or Waterman but when I'm on holidays or travelling and am not sure to be back home with it, I prefer taking one of those costless chinese ... I never had any problem with them and have no stress about forgetting it or letting it fall ...

[matt49]

It also have one of these pens with a fine nib and I have to say its one of the smoothest nibs straight out of the box I've used ,quite wet , very good build quality and for the price I think its was £6.00 with postage and a converter very good value indeed and its looks awesome

Matt

[sarmento2k]

Very nice review.

 

I got one last month, and worked perfectly since them, but now it started leaking and its not suitable anymore. I have it cleaned, replaced the converter, but the feeder looks like loose, and ink leaks randonly.

 

I paid US$ 10,00 (shipping include) just to check the Jinhao brand, but according to the dealer, most of them showed some issues.

 

Quality control is chaotic and the weight balance very bad to try long writting.

 

I now place it in an "exotic" category, nothing more than this.

 

And I could never find more the six horses!

 

Regards

Sarmento Campos

[Notgatherox]

I have this pen too, and I like it. Though I hardly use it, it resides on my desk. I'll try to use it more often from now on!

 

Btw, if you're wondering why is this pen called "Eight Horses", it's because it got its name from a famous Chinese painting 八骏图 (which translates to "The picture of eight magnificent horses")

 

Here's a picture of the original painting.

 

 

 

On a side note: I only found seven horses! Still, I love the design.

 

 

~Epic

Edited May 15, 2015 by Lord Epic

[Dickkooty2]

Great review! She may very well pass for (a Pel 200)*, In the dusk with a light behind her.

 

However, the cost per horse does vary depending on how many you see. Eight is 25¢ , but 6 is .333 recurring.

 

(a Pel 200)* is (43) in the original Gilbert lyric from Trial by Jury.

[LuckyKate]

I have this pen--really like it! And there are definitely eight horses! In fact my favorite thing about this pen is the horses.

 

I do have one of the Jinhao porcelain ones with just the one blue horse--and it writes fantastically.

[HalloweenHJB]

Well, I saw this pen on Amazon for US $3.20, and with free shipping, so I thought, what the heck. It arrived today, and while it does have its drawbacks (the ribbed grip of thin plastic really isn't pleasant), the nib and feed seem rather good, and it writes nicely —right from the start.

 

So in my experience, the Baoer is pretty darn good for a pen that sells at that price! I've bought pens for significantly more, and had nothing but problems with them —so much so, I simply tossed them in the garbage can...

[Dickkooty2]

Does anyone know whether Baoer made the 507 without the horses? I just looked thru 15 pages of Amazon with no luck other than a very nice Parker look-alike in black or green.

[HalloweenHJB]

I see that the price has jumped to an outrageous $3.49! Here's the link:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008CBH7I2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00

[Dickkooty2]

I see that the price has jumped to an outrageous $3.49! Here's the link:

 

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008CBH7I2?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=od_aui_detailpages00

Thanks for the link! I need to see the resemblance to the 200 with my own eyeballs!

 

I guess that they didn't do the 507 body ohone Pferde/sans chavaux/ (growing weaker) senza cavalli/ (weaker still) sin caballos/ (yet barely alive) sen cavalos/ knocking at death's door) χωρίς άλογα. I paid in dollars!

 

Maybe I can fill in the engraving with body putty.

[Dickkooty2]

I have received my horsey pen. It is indeed horsey. I can now compare the two with my own aged eyes.

 

'Horsey' is indeed the appropriate word to describe the Baoer.

 

I am looking at the Baoer next to a Pelikan M200, The Pel's binde is a striated brown so the tone is not a glaring contrast with the very grayed green barrel of the Baoer.

 

WOW! The Baoer is a 200 on steroids. Longer, fatter, incredibly heavier, but with the same proportions. The trim is the same in positions and intent but overdone.

 

I shall keep it as another Chinese tribute pen gone wrong.

[ak2k5]

Just want to ask how are the pens holding up?

Its an excellent Writer and I used it regularly for 2-3 months. I have noticed the finish in the barell peeling off. Its a great writer but not for daily use if you want to keep the finish and paint intact.

Anyways its very cheap so I might just grab another one