MySwag.org The Off-road Camper Trailer Forum
General => Introductions => Topic started by: ipickles on May 21, 2011, 08:53:01 AM
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hi all, my swaggers.
this is my first post on my swag but have been actively reading posts for quite some time.
could any one help me with some more info about the campomatic camp trailer in particular the ranger xtc ss, i would be interested to hear from any one owning one of these units and hearing there good or bad points if any, also i have been told that the campermatic brand has moved off shore can any one confirm this, and in what year were the last campers made in Australia.
waiting in anticipation, kindest regards pickles.
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Welcome to myswag ipickles! I have nfi about campomatic trailers but I am sure somebody will be able to answer your question.
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G'day & Welcome.
There are two or three members with Campomatics on here, and I am sure that all will sing their praise. They are well made, excellent off road and very practical. There is some discussion about a change in quality, as at some point more recently they were allegedly made from Chinese manufactured components, but the last time I asked them, they were making them in Rydalmere in Sydney.
they seem to hold their value very well, so the few 2nd hand units I've seen have been almost as much as a new unit, ~$32K.
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Hi and welcome to My Swag ipickles :cheers:
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Hi ipickles
Welcome to My Swag carn't help you with info on the campomatic they have been around a far while Happy Trails
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Hi and welcome, sorry, I'm a soft floor user myself, can't help, enjoy your stay.
Squirell/Graeme
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If they are from the same mob that currently own Trak Shak, steer well clear. Or buy a second hand one.
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If they are from the same mob that currently own Trak Shak, steer well clear. Or buy a second hand one.
??? ???
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??? ???
They are owned and imported by the same company. Don't go there. Buy an early aussie built one.
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ipickles Welcome to MySwag , I am amazed you have read heaps of posts & still you have joined . Then read on Enjoy & dont be bashful join in the fun :cheers:
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Welcome on-board.
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Camp-o-matic , originaly made at Yatala [ just sth of Beenliegh Qld ] then moved to SA and now based in Sydney NSW , original [Yatala] and early SA built upto 05/06 seem to have a better build quality than the current new crop made .
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Welcome to the forum, I am sure someone can answer your queries
GG
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I have 2 mates who have them. One owned an older model and loved it but damaged it in an accident. Both him and another mate (who was about to retire) checked out the new ones and placed orders on them. The mate with the damaged one got his new camper around 6 months ago and was very disappointed in the quality of it, lots of small things that he has had to fix but should have been picked up before delivery. As an example, he went to fill up the wate tank and when the hose wouldn't go in, he had a peek and noticed he could see inside the camper! Thank god he hadn't turned the tap on! The retiree who already had put his order in threatened them to not deliver his until a proper pre-delivery inspection was made. While it was much better he still had isses - the was a buckle in the panel close to where the boat rack had been fitted and as for the boat rack, it took 3 men to hold it down to get his tinny on. It sounded to me like the struts supplied were the wrong spec. From these 2 I gather the basic product is good but the finishing off and pre-delivery inspection leaves a lot to be desired. Surely not a hard thing to fix with the right people.
Mark.
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Originally they were made in Australia then the owners had them made in China and imported them. Apparently the quality went downhill from there It seems that they at least now send Australian made canvass to China for sewing to improve the quality. Those with older models swear by them.
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thanks every one for you're helpfull comments, i am looking at a second hand campomatic camper, no decisions made yet just doing a bit of home work. can anyone tell me when or what year they started shipping from china.
thanks again every one for you're time. kindest regards pickles.
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thanks every one for you're helpfull comments, i am looking at a second hand campomatic camper, no decisions made yet just doing a bit of home work. can anyone tell me when or what year they started shipping from china.
thanks again every one for you're time. kindest regards pickles.
If it was the same time as the TS it would be about 2004. However I think they may have picked up the campomatic business later than that. I think the current management took over in about 2008.
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Plenty of people with obviously no real facts or experience with the Camp-o-matic brand, and all too ready to pass on hear say information. Bit disappointing really.
ipickles, I'll try and compile some real informaiton for you and either post it up here or PM you bit later tonight. I've just got home from yet another brilliant weekend away in my Camp-o-matic Ranger XTC.
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Plenty of people with obviously no real facts or experience with the Camp-o-matic brand, and all too ready to pass on hear say information. Bit disappointing really, even from some of the so called senior members of the forum.
ipickles, I'll try and compile some real informaiton for you and either post it up here or PM you bit later tonight. I've just got home from yet another brilliant weekend in my Camp-o-matic Ranger XTC.
As I stated mate I bought a TS from this mob that now import Campomatic and I wouldn't feed them. I have plenty of photos, correspondance, and eventually my money back to prove my point. There were plenty of Campo's in for warranty work when I went in there.
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Plenty of people with obviously no real facts or experience with the Camp-o-matic brand, and all too ready to pass on hear say information
I have a feeling that may be directed at my response? My '2 mates' I refer to...I worked with one for 3 years and was only talking to him last night, he's on his trip around Oz right now and is happy with the Campomatic now he's ironed out the bugs. I have his boat he left at home because of the boat rack issue! The other was the president of my old 4wd club who travels for 3 months every year in his 'old' campomatic. Being a bit younger amd more computer savvy I helped these 2 reduce pictures to get them e-mailed off to campomatic as proof of their claims.
I have an Aussie made Trak Shak and on my trip around Oz I ran into a very peeved off bloke who had a new Chinese Trak Shak with lots of issues which he showed me. But I've also read about people quite happy with their new Trak Shaks. As a Trak Shak owner with real experience with the brand, I'd be hesitant buying a new one until I saw it in front of me. No doubt the same thing is happening with the Campomatics, some are good and others not so.
Mark.
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hi ipickles
there are two topics that really get people moving on my swag 12 volt power supply and campomatic ct's My campo which I have had for 18 months,2006 xtc has performed really good and suits me,tows beautifully and is easy to set up,good quality appliances and layout and a lot cheaper than a aussie swag or a KK.In the end it is up to the individual to make a choice of what they want of a campertrailer and its end use.See you out in the bush johno 65 8)
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thanks every one for you're helpfull comments, i am looking at a second hand campomatic camper, no decisions made yet just doing a bit of home work. can anyone tell me when or what year they started shipping from china.
thanks again every one for you're time. kindest regards pickles.
Camp-o-matic was a family owned and run company in Queensland for over 30 years, and was sold and moved to SA. During its time based in SA, a move was made to have the campers manufactured overseas, and qulity control slipped, and what was a brilliantly designed and manufactured camper, soon was dogged by quality issues, and poorly finished off products. From what I can gather these quality issues and overseas manufacture commenced around 2004/2005, and continued until the company was eventually purchased and moved to Sydney in 2007/2008.
Now based in Sydney, the company moved from overseas manufacture, to overseas manufacture of the rolling chassis and reverted back to local assembly, to include a few more local products, including all of the canvas being Wax Converters canvas manufactured in the Hunter Valley in NSW, all of the 240 electrical parts are either clipsal or HPM, the stove and sink is from Spinflow manufactured in the UK, all of the gas components are from local suppliers in Sydney, the LED lights and reading lights are from Hella Australia while all of the external lights are from Narva Australia, the fride is from Waeco in Queensland and the window mesh is supplied by Stratco but imported from Japan.
A fully optioned Camp/o/matic Ranger XTC including boat loader and full canvas walls will now set you back the best part of $42,000-$44,000, however there are a few later modelled Ranger XTC seconhand units being sold for prices ranging from $21,000 to $30,000.
If considering a secondhand unit in the 2004 to 2005 era, which is the time quality started to slip, if you look at the canvas awning around the stove area, you will find that some have an extended piece over the kitchen area, whereas some will have no extention and the adjacent pole will be closer to the end of the extended kitchen. The extended awning is a sign that the camper could be an overseas manufactured model.
I have spoken to owners of Camp/o/matic campers which have been purchased from SA, and yes they have had quite a few issues including leaking or poor quality canvas and cracked draw bars, however they were quick to defend the Sydney based operation, and actually praised them for their attempts to rectify problems surfacing in their SA purchased campers.
So to sum up, if you are purchasing a secondhand unit from 2004 or prior, you could be pretty safe in the thoughts that it was one of the quality Australian built units. If purchasing a model around the 2007/2008 era, be aware that it could either be a complete oversease built unit, or one of the overseas chassis assembled in Australia using Australian canvas and other bibs and bobs. I have a friend who is about to take delivery of a 2009 model, and I will be interested to compare it to my 2002 model in close quarters. I was down at Camp/o/matic HQ in Sydney last week and did have a little time to go over a current display model, and whilst I noticed some areas which appeared to be lighter in construction, I'll reserve my judgement until I can get a closer look at my mates newish camper.
Overseas manufacture does not automatically indicate poor quality, but in the Camp/o/matic campers it does indicate that perhaps a closer inspection is required. Reallistically most off-road campers will never get used to their full potential, and what will fail on one could either be the result of hard use, or it could be the result of inferior manufacture.
Good luck with your decision.
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Camp-o-matic was a family owned and run company in Queensland for over 30 years, and was sold and moved to SA. During its time based in SA, a move was made to have the campers manufactured overseas, and qulity control slipped, and what was a brilliantly designed and manufactured camper, soon was dogged by quality issues, and poorly finished off products. From what I can gather these quality issues and overseas manufacture commenced around 2004/2005, and continued until the company was eventually purchased and moved to Sydney in 2007/2008.
Now based in Sydney, the company moved from overseas manufacture, to overseas manufacture of the rolling chassis and reverted back to local assembly, to include a few more local products, including all of the canvas being Wax Converters canvas manufactured in the Hunter Valley in NSW, all of the 240 electrical parts are either clipsal or HPM, the stove and sink is from Spinflow manufactured in the UK, all of the gas components are from local suppliers in Sydney, the LED lights and reading lights are from Hella Australia while all of the external lights are from Narva Australia, the fride is from Waeco in Queensland and the window mesh is supplied by Stratco but imported from Japan.
A fully optioned Camp/o/matic Ranger XTC including boat loader and full canvas walls will now set you back the best part of $42,000-$44,000, however there are a few later modelled Ranger XTC seconhand units being sold for prices ranging from $21,000 to $30,000.
If considering a secondhand unit in the 2004 to 2005 era, which is the time quality started to slip, if you look at the canvas awning around the stove area, you will find that some have an extended piece over the kitchen area, whereas some will have no extention and the adjacent pole will be closer to the end of the extended kitchen. The extended awning is a sign that the camper could be an overseas manufactured model.
I have spoken to owners of Camp/o/matic campers which have been purchased from SA, and yes they have had quite a few issues including leaking or poor quality canvas and cracked draw bars, however they were quick to defend the Sydney based operation, and actually praised them for their attempts to rectify problems surfacing in their SA purchased campers.
So to sum up, if you are purchasing a secondhand unit from 2004 or prior, you could be pretty safe in the thoughts that it was one of the quality Australian built units. If purchasing a model around the 2007/2008 era, be aware that it could either be a complete oversease built unit, or one of the overseas chassis assembled in Australia using Australian canvas and other bibs and bobs. I have a friend who is about to take delivery of a 2009 model, and I will be interested to compare it to my 2002 model in close quarters. I was down at Camp/o/matic HQ in Sydney last week and did have a little time to go over a current display model, and whilst I noticed some areas which appeared to be lighter in construction, I'll reserve my judgement until I can get a closer look at my mates newish camper.
Overseas manufacture does not automatically indicate poor quality, but in the Camp/o/matic campers it does indicate that perhaps a closer inspection is required. Reallistically most off-road campers will never get used to their full potential, and what will fail on one could either be the result of hard use, or it could be the result of inferior manufacture.
Good luck with your decision.
Gunna Do
What you have posted is mostly spot on from what I understand. Except that I was told by them after being to the factory to return my TS and questioning them (because things were not adding up) that they are fully imported with Chinese air in the tyres. They are given a final detail and sent out the door. The Canvas (Wax converters as indicated) is actually shipped to China sewn up and fitted over there. All of the fittings in the TS are Chinese. The Campomatic is their premium hard floor however I bet the unit you looked at was in the front display room. The factory around the side is a storage facility only, their main business is audio equipment - go figure.
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thanks every one for taking you're time to help me in my asked questions.
we are currently looking around and the campomatic caught my eye as they seem well priced for a unit like this.
i will defiantly take on board all you re kind help and advice.
thanks again every one most appreciated.
kindest regards pickles.
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Gunna Do
What you have posted is mostly spot on from what I understand. Except that I was told by them after being to the factory to return my TS and questioning them (because things were not adding up) that they are fully imported with Chinese air in the tyres. They are given a final detail and sent out the door. The Canvas (Wax converters as indicated) is actually shipped to China sewn up and fitted over there. All of the fittings in the TS are Chinese. The Campomatic is their premium hard floor however I bet the unit you looked at was in the front display room. The factory around the side is a storage facility only, their main business is audio equipment - go figure.
The unit I looked at was out the back in the shed mixed in with all the PA equipement, and it did surprise me that there wasn't some sort of small production line of partly built campers, so your suggestion about where they are built has a lot of merit. Thanks for the extra info and insight into the current Camp-o-matic business practices. Much appreciated.
As a very happy Camp-o-matic camper owner, I have tried to gain as much information on the brand as I can, so am happy to take on board any extra information.
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As a very happy Camp-o-matic camper owner, I have tried to gain as much information on the brand as I can, so am happy to take on board any extra information.
Its great that you are happy with your unit as I am sure there are a lot of happy TS customers out there as well. I know of one who has a 2005 Chinese model that has been around the block and it has been great. The issues seem to be quality control. The design of both the Camp-o-matic and TS are great. The issue for me was that what I was sold was not what I received. The show units used to sell their product are 2007 models and substantially better built (TS) than what they currently import and supply. Make no mistake they are now fully imported, hence the production delays and quality issues.
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Here's some interesting pictures!
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Mark, any clues on where you got the pics from, or even a link would be better?
I see one was taken in 2005, but I'd love to know when the rest were taken.
If you don't want to post up the info, by PM would be great.
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I knew I had seen this pictures somewhere so tonight I've been 'Googling' for a while trying to find them and searching through ExplorOz, which I've frequented for a few years, but with no luck. Then I went to my own Trak Shak folder (pictures of mine and heaps of others I gathered before we bought one) and there they were! So sorry I can't remember where I got them. In looking at the Campomatic picture, there's no obvious evidence it's in China, could be in an Australian shed, but it was originally posted with the Trak Shak photos as both being in China. I'll keep looking.
Mark.
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The scene in the pictures was what I wrongfully expected to see when I went to Campo and TS headquarters last week. I defend the Camp-o-matic brand as much as possible, but it sounds like my loyalty is being let down.
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The scene in the pictures was what I wrongfully expected to see when I went to Campo and TS headquarters last week. I defend the Camp-o-matic brand as much as possible, but it sounds like my loyalty is being let down.
Gunna Do the main thing is that you are happy with your unit and it is one of the good ones. The worst thing for me is that I defended the Chinese TS (on explore OZ) based on what I was told by the company (Chinese bits, built here can qualify for Aussie made status as they claim in 4WD magazines for Camp-o) until I bought one and found out for myself that it is all BS. It was like popping a balloon, I was so exited to be getting a new TS and then this heap of S@#T turned up that was multiple colours, rusty, canvas ripped etc etc etc etc etc and it was game over for me. Worse still another fella that read my post defending them put down his money to. He is still chasing his trailer or his money as far as I am aware. My belief is that they wait until they have a certain number of orders (hence all the shows they attend) and then get a batch made and sent over in whatever numbers are economical. Unfortunately many of the stainless steel parts that are on the show units (and web site) are substituted for mild steel with gal paint on it (they were on my unit any way).
Any way enough of that. Most people will modify and improve them to suit their need's. As I said before the TS are some of the best designed campers for the large family I have seen.
Regards
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Look closely at the bottom picture of Trak Shaks and follow the yellow line - that looks like a Campomatic sitting next to a Trak Shak! Only just noticed it.
I've wanted a Trak Shak for years and just like the Campomatics, they were both top Aussie made trailers as good as you could get. When I met the bloke I spoke about with the new Trak Shak on our trip (in 2008) I couldn't believe my eyes and felt a bit deflated, the canvas had quite a few holes here and there, plus it looked 'slippery' like a cheap coat. The stainless steel boat rack had surface rust all over it and it was only 3 months old, admittedly he had travelled the west coast in that time so sea spray would be an issue but not enough to cause that. He told me Trak Shak said the canvas and stainless was Chinese made and they were about to start shipping Aussie canvas over there to be fitted and were currently looking for a new stainless steel supplier.
I warned my mates buying the new Campomatics to be wary but the price compared to the KK and the like was too good and they went ahead. Still, my retired mates wasn't as bad as the other so there's certainly the chance you can get a good one - maybe it's the old Landrover thing about getting one built on Monday and not a Friday, or the other way around?
Mark.
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Look closely at the bottom picture of Trak Shaks and follow the yellow line - that looks like a Campomatic sitting next to a Trak Shak! Only just noticed it.
Mark.
Look closely at the kitchen in the foreground also, is that from a Camp O as it is not the kitchen from a Trak Shak?
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Look at the shed roof on the second and third picture, definitely the same shed.
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Good pick ups, the shed walls are the same and the kitchen is a slide out one, you can see the lock open, no doubt sticking out of a Campomatic.
These guys need a PR revamp, be open and up-front about their operations, drastically improve their pre-delivery quality inspections and back it all up with a do-anything-for-the-customer warranty. Otherwise I can see the demise of 2 iconic 'Aussie?' campers.
Mark.
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I think the chinese signs on the wall are some what of a give away!!