Jackson guitars emerged out of Charvel in the early '80s, as Charvel was becoming an in-demand bespoke guitar manufacturer. Jackson took up Charvel's custom order business, adding a few new models of their own, and continuing to ramp up the elaborate finishes and appointments. Jackson remained a custom-order only manufacturer until around 1989, when they opened up standard production models manufactured in Japan. While Jackson continued operating their full-custom US shop through their acquisition by FMIC in 2003, the "Pre-Production" era from 1981 - 1989 represent a rare slice of American guitar history.

The Dinky was listed as "Strat" in Jackson's order sheets.