Has any one else noticed modern fluorescent lamps are shorter then the supposed standard length as in the lamps will fit into the fixture and still light up but the pins are exposed on one or both ends

Example
I now have a Luxo inspection lamp that takes four F4T5 lamps (Two being Daylight and the other two being BLB). The lamps are supposed to be 6" (I have not measured them though) and I believe they are a little shorter then the "standard" length because the pins are exposed on both ends of the lamps. The lamps still make contact with the socket though


PS: I will post pictures of the Luxo inspection lamp latter
It has Sylvania/GTE lamps 

I've noticed this too. Like in my early desk lamps, the Mazda lamp fits in the sockets perfectly, while some newer Sylvania lamps leave about a few mm gap on each side. The GE t12 version (aforementioned lamps were f15t8 in this case) was maybe a bit too tight. Maybe tolerances vary somewhat between lamp manufacturers as well as light fixture manufacturers. I've also noticed that Westy f40 lamps are just a tad longer than new sylvanias.

Not just you, this happens with the European lamps as well

I've noticed that new GE lamps are a little longer than Sylvania lamps. I've also noticed that some fixtures have closer socket spacing than others. If I have a fixture with far socket spacing (meaning sockets for the same lamp, not socket spacing between lamps) I'll try to use GE lamps and use Sylvania lamps for fixtures with tight spacing. I've noticed this with T12s but haven't noticed it with T8s. Could be true for T8s too, but I just haven't come across a fixture that I couldn't fit the lamps into. I have run across F20 fixtures that would not fit a newer GE lamp though. I thought I was going to break the sockets trying to cram it in there so I gave up and compared it next to a Sylvania lamp (since the lamp I removed was a Sylvania) and sure enough, the GE tubes are longer by about 1/16".

I've got some currently-made Altos in a vintage Mitchell preheat shop light that I'm afraid will crack the sockets if I try to remove, they're so tight!  That said, they're perfectly good lamps.  GEs might be hard to fit but I may get some anyway...silver ends. 

The 80s and early 90s F40T12 GEs were a bit longer vs Sylvania & Philips.  The dang sockets would always crack and break when I pulled old GEs out and put new ones in.  Not so much with the Sylvi's and Philips. 

It's not the lights, the kid in the hardware store assured me of this, really, you should of seen the dumb look on his face when I asked him if he thinks the problem is really my fixture, and that it might be growing, growing fixtures seem to be a new problem the fixture manufacturers should be looking into, or provide instruction on how to bonsai them... 

The new GE T12s are longer than other brands too. It's not just the 80s and 90s tubes.

I noticed this too. I have a 50's preheater, and several others, where I'm forced to use older lamps, because any new ones I try are simply too short.

I noticed the same.  Another I noticed is I have a cheap Feit F40DX which is longer than a standard lamp and won't fit in a '40s preheater I have.