The all Australian made ShippShape rooftop tents are now being manufactured again. New owner Mark Allen who purchased the business about twelve months ago said they will continue to follow the original design, but have made some minor changes in construction which offer improved ventilation for summer camping. Mark went on to say to offer as low a price as possible, we will not have a shop front & at this stage wont be attending shows. ShippShape will deliver tents Australia wide, right to their customers doors via courier. Mark is no stranger to the camping & canvas world as he is the owner of http://www.mrswagman.com.au 

Erik and Inga Shipp starting making the roof top tents in 1985 using the family kitchen where the sewing was done by Inga & the lounge room was Erik's welding and fabrication shop. They then moved onto a dedicated factory premises in Sydney to supply hundreds of ShippShape tents to happy customers throughout Australia. Sadly Erik passed away in 2011.

Shippshape uses the reliable Australian made WCT Dynaproofed Billabong canvas which is the choice of the majority of Australian camper trailer manufacturers. The roof top tents can be fitted to almost any vehicle or trailer & can be set up in minutes for comfortable sleeping and camping.

The Shack is the base model & ideal for people on the move. It is fast & easy to set up or pack away by one person. There are no poles or pegs on the main tent. The zip on water & dust proof PVC travel cover unzips on three sides & remains  attached to the front of the tent bed base. It can be simply folded over the vehicle windscreen or the draw bar if fitted to a trailer while the tent is set up.

The side of the opened tent features an attached awning/wall that is 2.1 metres long & drops 1.9 metres to the ground for an instant privacy & weather shelter or can alternatively be propped up on two poles to act as a handy awning. The walls can be left attached when folding the tent away. All up the Shack only weighs 55kg.

The Bush Hut includes four additional canvas walls to the above creating a living room which have canvas & mesh screens, perfect for allowing the breeze to flow through. A separate floor is available if required.

The package has been tailored to suit the tourer or traveller for extremely fast setup & pack down, plus has the added advantage of adding walls one at a time as required to act as privacy screens or wind/sun blocks. Each wall has either a large window or a door.

The standard awning/wall still provides an additional awning as per The Shack, so you'll have an enclosed room of 2.1 metres by 1.4 metres plus an awning of 2.1 metres by 1.9 metres, that can be quickly & easily set up and packed away by one person.

The Homestead package is ideal for longer stays & for accommodating extra people. It includes a large one piece completely enclosed room of four walls & floor. The Homestead room measures 3.3 metres out from the vehicle & zips under the standard Shack side awning. There are two doors & three windows, all of which have canvas & mesh screens allowing the breeze to flow through.

Please check the Shippshape website for more details http://www.shippshape.com.au or their facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/shippshaperooftoptents

Thanks to mark Allen for the info

 

by Rob