Apparatus for moving under the tabs of a shingle and stripping the tabs evenly and cleanly from the underbody of the shingle along the line of joinder between the tabs and the underbody to provide a suitable subsurface over which a new roof can be laid. The apparatus involves a rectangular shaped blade that has an inclined ripping bar located upon its top surface along one side edge thereof. A tab guide is also positioned upon the top surface of the blade adjacent to its other side edge and includes a raised finger which is adapted to engage tabs passing over the blade and guide them through the apparatus. A hold down member is also mounted outboard of the blade adjacent to the ripping bar that is arranged to ride over the underbody section of the shingle to allow the stripping tool to separate the tabs without lifting the underbody of the shingle from the support sheeting to which it is nailed.
