I find it hard to believe there is anyone who can work a hammer that failed to be aware of this.

My house, built in the 20's has 'em.

+1

I thought that the original 2x4 measurement was real, but what you got was rough-cut 2x4 and if you wanted something with a slightly better finish, you had to do it yourself and you ended up with smaller than 2x4. Now they finish it for you so you don't end up with 2x4 because they've already given it a nice smooth (relatively) surface.

No, no, no! This world is full of 2 things, extreme idiots and jackasses that use lawyers to make money via frivolous or fake lawsuits.

Shakedown lawsuit. They hope to get a few $ to go away.

Are they stupid, or just dishonest?

You have got to be kidding me. There is no damaged class for a class action lawsuit, and even if there was, now everyone will have to adjust to the new lumber size. Idiotic.

I think Home Depot and Menards should reimburse the plaintiffs with several tons of sawdust to compensate for the amount of wood by which they were "short changed". Just drop it off with a large dump truck in front of their houses early on a Monday morning.

Wouldn't it be great if the law said every kid from 13-19 had to use an outhouse only to drop a deuce across that age range.

Mind you, I never had to except for a few times. But I was subjected to Ivory soap in the tub. Made me the man I am today.

Yeah, that is when the lumber were rough and dimensionally correct.

They used to be 1 3/4 x 3 5/8 for framing and 2x4 rough cut, I have remodeled old homes that had what they called 2x3s for framing

My house was built in the early '60's...a few yrs. ago I put a set French door between two bedrooms and there were 2x3's throughout.
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http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1498193798.jpg

Probably because it wasn't a load bearing wall

I seem to recall the days when they were 1 5/8 x 3 5/8. Forty years ago or so. I expect eventually a 2x4 -8 will be 7 1/2 feet long.

The really sad thing here is, the lawyers, and probably the judge as well, probably have no clue that this is standard practice, because they always "call the guy" to fix, build things for them.

My 61 year old bungalow has the same dimensions as the "2x4s" today.
Most of it is Douglas Fir and is like trying to drive a nail into bone.

Another interesting thing about the house is that it has standard 1/2 inch drywall. It was kind of experimental as most of the homes around me have plastered blue board instead of drywall.

Actually if you go into most old homes they are indeed 2x4. But I'd venture to say you can't walk into any home built over the last 50 years and find a true 2x4 in the home. My house is somewhere around 100 years old. My walls are oak 2x4 and yes I have measured them.

I discovered the 2X4 thing when I was a kid. I mean around 12 years old. The first time I built a table the, "light went on". These things are not 2X4's. My dad explained to me that the 2X4 was the rough cut and the finish cut was smaller.

No, that will not happen. But you can buy precut 2x4x8 finished at 92-5/8" so when you add a top and bottom plate and finishing materials you have a finished ceiling height of 8'.

From a website called HBS Dealer (HBS-Hardware and building supply) The site is an industry site. Note the article is from 2014.


Lowe’s ordered to pay 2x4 settlement

September 2, 2014

A Marin County California judge ordered Mooresville, North Carolina-based Lowe’s to pay a $1.6 million settlement over a lawsuit alleging the inaccurate description of structural dimensional building products.

One upshot of the settlement is the intention of Lowe’s to include the actual product dimensions of 2x4 lumber (1.5 inches by 3.5 inches) along with the description of the product as a “2x4.”

The suit arose from a civil enforcement action filed by district attorneys of several California counties.

"Consumers should expect when making product purchases that retailers are providing accurate information especially when misinformation could adversely affect building projects that more often than not rely on precise measurements," said District Attorney Ed Berberian.

Lowe’s spokeswoman Karen Cobb told HCN by e-mail that there are about 100 stores affected by the settlement. "Enhanced product signage and labeling is now on Lowes.com and in Lowe's advertising," she said. "And work is underway to update signage in California stores."

In a statement, Cobb added: "Periodically, representatives of local Weights and Measures departments visit retailers, and they expressed concerns about common product measurements, such as a 2x4 piece of lumber.

"These visits were initiated as a result of standards set by California's Division of Measurement Standards, which relies upon guidance from the National Institute of Standards and Technology concerning the sale of certain commodity products.

"Historically, Lowe's provided information about product dimensions received from vendors. Moving forward, customers will now be able to locate product by actual and common dimensions as provided by vendors for certain building products. For example, for a piece of lumber commonly known as a 2X4, customers will see both the common name (2x4) and the actual product dimensions (1.5 x 3.5 inches).

"Both Lowe's and the California DAs agreed that a settlement is in the best interest of all parties. It allows us to continue moving forward with our program to provide both actual and common product dimensions and meet our shared goals."

The settlement was ordered by Marin Superior Court Judge Paul Haakenson.