Posted on 09/10/2014 6:24:49 PM PDT by representativerepublic
The worst part is, this wasn’t based on a consumer complaint. This was started by some bureaucrat with nothing better to do. Straight out of Atlas Shrugged.
Only so-called “dimensional” lumber really has the stated dimensions when finished. Answer in #13 is good.
Anybody that buys one already knows, or will as soon as they measure it. I’ve actually gone to the tool department in a store and borrowed a tape to measure stuff I was selecting (not dimensional lumber). Labeling it would be on a par with having to label a knife “sharp” (which they probably do, but that’s no reason to propagate the stupid).
The 2x4 is a full sawn measurement. By the time they dried it and ran it through a planer it came out smaller. It was a standard that was established many, many years ago.
WOW...I learned that when I was 16...Thought everyone knew it.
Crooked lawyers...crooked judges...
or when dealing with finish trim, a 1” thick board is called a 5/4 (five quarter) and a 3/4” board is 4/4 (four quarter)
I'm just a hobbyist with carpentry. But 2" x 4" refers to nomimal size, when it's cut and milled. What you end up with after it dries, at the store is called the actual size which can be 1-1/2 to 1-5/8 inches by 3-1/2 to 3-5/8 inches. Actual size varies depending on shrinkage and other factors. It's common knowledge to 99 percent of people buying wood stock that when you buy a 2x4 (two-by-four), the actual size is smaller. The store is not trying to cheat or trick anyone.
The part I don't get is why single out Lowe's since it's a universal standard; they need to sue every lumberyard in creation since everyone's guilty of the same crime.
Why stop there? They need to go further:
1)Spell out the words such as 'inches' and 'feet' because 'in' and 'in.' can be confused by some
2)Require that units of measurements be written in several different languages
3)Have a poster explaining the difference between "feet" what you put your shoes on is different than "feet" as a unit of measurement. (Same with the word 'yard')
Do I need to put a /sarc tag on?
Divide and conquer, probably. If they sued everybody simultaneously, they might mount a big enough defense fund to send the idiots packing.
I was told the 2 X 4 dimension is the wet dimension. Once the wood is dried it shrinks.
Could be a load and maybe 2 X 4 was just easier to say then 1 and 3/4.
A contractor friend of mine went to Costa Rica to build a house for his g-friend. Got there and forunf out all the 2x4’s he ordered were actually 2x4! Screwed up the whole project!
They used to be 2”x4” until early 20th century? My dad tore down an old house in the 1960’s that had real 2x4s, 2x6s, 2x10s, etc. They were straight as an arrow and very heavy. Very difficult to cut and VERY hard to drive a nail through.
The standard changed, but the naming stayed the same for convenience. Everyone who has worked with lumber since the 1950s knows that a 2x4 is 1 1/2” x 3 1/2”
“3)Have a poster explaining the difference between “feet” what you put your shoes on is different than “feet” as a unit of measurement. (Same with the word ‘yard’)”
My shod feet are 12 inches each. I can’t help it if your feet are improperly sized.
The key word you said was “standard” and “established years ago”. They would be the basis of an appeal, similar to “customary business practice” that is acknowledged in law.
what about porcelain tile? 16 x 16 is not a true 16 x 16 this is going mess everything up, now packaging will have to be changed and precise measurements will have to be printed on boxes. The added cost will be passed on....
What a damn dunce!
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