Anybody have or have checked out the Rambler by Ocean Aire?

I'm thinking of a relaxed-geo distance bike, and it looks pretty attractive.

Care to share your experiences and opinions?

They are very nice all-rounder bikes. They are designed for wider tires and fenders, and have a longer wheelbase and relaxed road geometry. The Paul Racer brakes are pretty great, but they're expensive (sold separately) and you can't use any other brakes. The Rambler isn't overbuilt for loaded touring, but neither does it seem to be super light-weight. Randonneuring (ultra long-distance riding) has definitely influenced their design.

The Rambler is similar in mission to some of the bikes from Rivendell, Velo Orange, Boulder, Cycles Toussaint, and others. The Rambler is TIG-welded in the US; some of the others are lugged overseas, lugged in the US (more expensive), or TIG-ed overseas.

Nothing against the Rambler, but for a bike that expensive I would suggest you ride one first. You have lots of options at that price point, including some customs. There are several custom builders in Michigan.

Don't own one but seriously considered one. The frame comes with the brakes, they are not sold separately so the price is pretty good. Low trail thin walled tubing hand made in Oregon at Zen Fabrications. Low bottom bracket, typical rando geometry. I am not a fan of tig welded bikes so I bought a Rivendell instead.

My guess is the Rambler is a much more comfortable bike to ride than the Riv.

Would I compare it to a custom? No, the beauty with the Ocean Air is you can buy one today and not wait for a custom bike to be built. Second the custom is going to cost more and if you are just experimenting this would be a good choice. The Cycle Toussaint and Velo Orange and not even in the same category and their price reflects this.

The Rambler gets great reviews and I have yet to see one on the second hand market which should tell you something. Check out the Google 650 group and do a search I am pretty sure there are a few owners there.

I've checked out their website and like what they do both with their conversions and now with the Rambler. Most of the Ramblers are sold on the west coast, so I've never seen one but if I were to order a custom 650b bike, it would have the Ramblers geometry, but I would prefer lugs and braze ons for MAFAC or Grand Bois Chouette brakes.

Yes, I don't think I've seen or heard of any in Michigan. Have to try some other lists, with explicit 650b sections.