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I never knew this. So I have an excuse because I'm not in the building trade. Why is a 2x4 called a 2x4? Can't they just cut it that size? Maybe they only use certain trees that grow 2 inches thick?
I really want to know.
I believe the shrinkage is due to not just the cut, but how the wood is processed after it is cut. Kiln dried wood shrinks to roughly the dimensions of 1 1/2 x 3 1/2. The lumber companies have this down to such a science that they are consistently at the 1 1/2 x 3 1/3 measurements. So, really it WAS a 2x4 at one time.
Somebody mentioned it earlier. The process is similar to restaurants saying 1/4 pound patty, but after cooking it, it is no longer 1/4 pound.
I never knew this. So I have an excuse because I'm not in the building trade. Why is a 2x4 called a 2x4? Can't they just cut it that size? Maybe they only use certain trees that grow 2 inches thick?
I actually didn't know that virtually all lumber was not true size until I started calculating the amount needed to redo my deck. Just in case it hasn't already been mentioned, the "class action game" is that the law firm is awarded $18 million in attorneys' fees while each member of the class receives a $10 gift certificate (if that). I'm a lawyer who has never been involved in a class-action suit, but those who are drive Ferraris. I'm sure these firms have think tanks that do nothing but sit around and dream up potential class actions, then go trolling for representative "victims" to get the suit started. They really are the lowest form of swamp life - but, again, our society and our massively screwed-up legal system richly rewards them. Cap the attorneys' fees at $1 million and the entire class-action industry would dry up overnight.
I lived in an old house that had real rough sawn 2x4's and the main beam in the basement was a real one piece 6x12
Next law suit- any store that advertises a can as a 'gallon' of paint. There hasn't been 128 oz of paint in a can for over a decade.
Hw won't get far. All the Home Depots in my area haven't called then 4x4s in ages. The cards next to each bin give the exact, correct dimensions, something like 3.538 x 3.542 x 8 feet. And they've done that for at least the last several years.
How long will it be before some everything-must-be-controlled-by-some-law weenie sues Ford Motor Co., because the Focus he just bought wasn't designed and built by Henry Ford personally?
It would be great if the defendants (HD, etc.) can turn around and sue the scum plaintiffs and their scum lawyer for harassment since any sane judge would throw their suit out due to the historical industry standard of measurement.
As far as I know you have to go back to the days when houses and buildings were built using lathe and plaster walls to see 2x4's that were actually 2x4's. Drywall has been used for a very long time now.
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