Have I lost my mind?

[MANTOOL]

I've got a (clear) 12' opening in the chain link fence and I used (what I thought were) 2-6' wide gates for the opening. Both gates have seen better (rusted out) days.
The original gates worked well for 44 years and when I got back home with 2-6' wide gates they were too short in width. Having said all that, what size (width) gates do I need? tia

 

[PCustoms]

6' I would think?

Maybe measure the old ones?

 

[Rccrawlerguy]

Could it be as simple as you forgot to take in account the space for hinges and latches?

 

[wssix99]

The first thing to get is a tape measure.

What are the real measurements of everything?

 

[OccupantRJ]

If two 6 foot gates were too narrow for a 12 foot opening, that does not compute due to needing hinge and latch clearances to begin with. Methinks someone has assumed a measurement.

 

[58Yeoman]

I feel your pain. I bought two 12" outside faucets. Here's a picture of them with one I already had. All three are 12".

 

[wssix99]

I had this problem when building a construction fence. Found out I had 5' gates...

 

[PCustoms]

You know how long it took me to find a 2x4" piece of lumber?

 

[Renegade1LI]

Did you buy nominal sized or actual?

 

[jack stand]

You know how long it took me to find a 2x4" piece of lumber?

I saw my own wood and before that bought full dimension saw mill lumber locally.
Now if I come across a "store bought" 2x4 it looks and feels like a little furring strip or strapping.
So I get your joke

 

[Captain Spaulding]

Manufactured gates are typically around 6” shorter than the opening. Two true 6’ gates would be too large for a 12’ opening with hinges and latches. The easiest fix is to add a board or pipe on the hinge sides to reduce the size of the opening. Custom gates is the other option.