But they’ve fudged things regarding this so-called standard. Essentially we have nominal nominal sizes. Oh, and the current “standard” was set in 1969.
There’s slop in the “standard”: for a 2x4 the allowed range is 1⅜ and 1⅝ inches by 3⅜ and 3⅝
Guess how much more likely you’re going to get something on the low end* than the high end.
It may be a little worse than before but it’s nothing new. Much of this is due to the availability of cheap low quality pine lumber sold through places like Lowes, Home Despot, and Menards, but also through traditional lumber suppliers. You can always get higher quality lumber and it will stick very closely to the nominal 1.5 x 3.5 standard. A full 2 x 4 inches was never a standard, it represented boards with a 1:2 ratio of profile dimension commonly used for framing, and originally cut haphazardly. Wood is cut while green, before drying, because it cuts more easily and doesn’t wear down the saws as rapidly. In drying it will always shrink. Sawmills began to focus on cutting green wood along 2" x 4" dimensions losing at least 1/4" for the kerf and more in the drying process, not to mention a rough sawn surface. Many sawmills now use bandsaws to cut the wood losing less from the saw kerf and modern saws of all types leave a smoother cut surface but there’s no way practical way to get exact dimensions from lumber except to cut and/or finish dried lumber which would lead to considerably greater cost.
So anybody who doesn’t like it should shut up and stop whining about a pointless subject, the lumber qualifies for lumber and construction standards and I hope the courts find a way to punish the asshole lawyers who are bringing a suit like this that’s going to end up costing everyone more as just the litigation costs propagate through the companies involved and no matter the outcome won’t change the dimensions of lumber.
ETA: Yes, I’m kind of cranky because it’s raining again and I’m sick of the fucking rain and the rare dry days in between where the temperature hits 90F and/or 90%+ humidity.
I would say to the OP not so much ripped off as planed off. 
I’m wondering why Home Depot and Menard’s are being sued and Lowes is not.
This octave only has seven notes…
In fairness, the lumber industry should have to use real dimensions instead of what they’ve done my whole life. The lawsuit seems like a lost cause but maybe it shakes up the bad practices the lumber industry has foisted on us.
It’s not a bad practice. If you don’t know how big a 2x4 is then it won’t do you much good to buy one. Maybe I missed it but I don’t recall ever seeing 2x4s marked or advertised as having dimensions of 2 inches by 4 inches. It’s a name.
I’ve known 2x4’s aren’t that size since age 11.
The one time I get tripped up is buying a wall stud by accident. Expecting it to be a 8 ft 2x4.
A pre cut wall stud is 92 5/8 inches. Not 8 ft.
Studs fit between the sole plate and top plate. Then standard 8ft drywall can be hung.
Menards does this too, as does our local small town lumber company. I’m thinking some first time do-it-yourselfer didn’t look closely when they bought their lumber, or else they’re trying to make a few bucks off the big companies.
I got some bad news for ya, Mr. 
I blame the renovation porn TV shows on HGTV and elsewhere. These weekend warriors think watching a few shows and picking up a hammer, drill and saw, and they think they are pros.
Some of us had wood shop in high school where we learned the basics. I was taught by my father, who learned it from the little German woodworker down the street. (He really was German. He really was little. He really was a woodworker, a professional craftsman.) Back then everyone had a real wood shop, real table saws (minus guards), drills, hammers, screwdrivers, etc. Back then we knew the difference between a saber saw and a jig saw.
You must be in Military Intelligence:cool:
This is more about sleazy lawyers than anything else. From the linked article.
:smack::dubious::smack::dubious:
Throw this issue on the top of the most frivolous law suits. Idiots. Sorry if that offends anyone that didnt know.
If a person is out to buy a “2x4” they should already know about the size difference
Original 2x4s are heavy ass hard wood! :eek::eek:Trying pounding a nail into it. I love to see it when we open up old houses’ walls but…
What they should be bitching about is the crap they “hide” inside of bunks of lumber. All the warped crap.
Do the buffoons know that there are different grades of plywood, different sizes of drywall, what about screws? Do they know the difference between a deck screw and a drywall screw?
If they have little knowledge of the construction industry they should not be near the lumber aisles with a tape measure!
I grew up with lumber, sawdust runs thru my veins from SO MANY of my forefathers before me. I love the smell of it.
Oh and by the way. Trees are a “dime a dozen” If you think otherwise, get the fuck out of the city, live out in the country where you can turn around and run into a tree every 1 millionth of a second. Another thing, they are a renewable source as opposed to oil, metals and coal. (course I could be wrong:dubious:)