What years of USA Jackson are considered the best?

[Dumple Stilzkin]

I had a USA RR1 and also a Jackson professional (the good one full mop inlay and logo, ebony fb and binding). I enjoyed the US model (made in 91), but the pro was better in every way. Now that I’m looking at grabbing a Dinky my question to those who know US built Jackson well is which years are the most consistent?

 

[jaxadam]

I’m just gonna tell a quick story that is not going to answer your question in the least.

In the early to mid 90’s all I gave a fuck about were Jacksons. USA Jackson this, Jackson that. Megadeth played Jacksons, Anthrax played Jacksons. I was obsessed. But I never owned one. The closest I ever got was my brother had a Charvette and I got my older neighbor who could drive to take me up to the music store so I could put a used Charvel Model 6 with some fucked up sparkly paint job on layaway. Boy my mom was PISSED when we had to go pay off the balance. But hot damn I was getting close.

So I was in in-school suspension and I was reading Guitar For the Practicing Musician. One of the teachers was like “what kind of guitars do you like?” And I’m like “Jacksons dude”. And he’s like “No, Tom Anderson is where it’s at”. And I’m like get the fuck out of here with that bullshit. I mean I thought that dude was nuts. He actually played guitar in a band but told me he wouldn’t tell me the name until I graduated. I was like “Tom Anderson, you’ve lost your mind, no one’s ever even heard of that shit.”

So some years go by and for my 18th birthday my dad wanted to get me something special. So I’m like here’s my chance. I’m getting a Jackson. So I go in the store and they had a few, but holy shit did they have some PRSs. The salesman was like “PRS is where it’s at” and I believed him. But he wouldn’t let me play any because he said I “had to be serious man” so that made me want one even more. So I walked out with a Custom 22.

So years later I’m back in the same store, and they have this USA Dinky with EMGs that I just couldn’t get enough of. I’m like “when I get my tax return back, this puppy is mine.” So I pretty much walk in there to buy it and the salesman is like check out this Koch Twintone. I’m like “damn that shit is nice. I’ll take the Dinky”. So about 45 minutes later my girlfriend and I are walking out and I’m carrying something by a handle and it’s not a guitar case.

So long story short, every time I’ve been within inches of acquiring my mid 90’s dream, some fucked up bullshit derailed me.

 

[Dumple Stilzkin]

I’m just gonna tell a quick story that is not going to answer your question in the least.

In the early to mid 90’s all I gave a fuck about were Jacksons. USA Jackson this, Jackson that. Megadeth played Jacksons, Anthrax played Jacksons. I was obsessed. But I never owned one. The closest I ever got was my brother had a Charvette and I got my older neighbor who could drive to take me up to the music store so I could put a used Charvel Model 6 with some fucked up sparkly paint job on layaway. Boy my mom was PISSED when we had to go pay off the balance. But hot damn I was getting close.

So I was in in-school suspension and I was reading Guitar For the Practicing Musician. One of the teachers was like “what kind of guitars do you like?” And I’m like “Jacksons dude”. And he’s like “No, Tom Anderson is where it’s at”. And I’m like get the fuck out of here with that bullshit. I mean I thought that dude was nuts. He actually played guitar in a band but told me he wouldn’t tell me the name until I graduated. I was like “Tom Anderson, you’ve lost your mind, no one’s ever even heard of that shit.”

So some years go by and for my 18th birthday my dad wanted to get me something special. So I’m like here’s my chance. I’m getting a Jackson. So I go in the store and they had a few, but holy shit did they have some PRSs. The salesman was like “PRS is where it’s at” and I believed him. But he wouldn’t let me play any because he said I “had to be serious man” so that made me want one even more. So I walked out with a Custom 22.

So years later I’m back in the same store, and they have this USA Dinky with EMGs that I just couldn’t get enough of. I’m like “when I get my tax return back, this puppy is mine.” So I pretty much walk in there to buy it and the salesman is like check out this Koch Twintone. I’m like “damn that shit is nice. I’ll take the Dinky”. So about 45 minutes later my girlfriend and I are walking out and I’m carrying something by a handle and it’s not a guitar case.

So long story short, every time I’ve been within inches of acquiring my mid 90’s dream, some fucked up bullshit derailed me.

Clearly you need a Jackson.

 

[tedtan]

The main thing is to decide if you want a top mount trem with and angled neck (older 80s models and more recent “Shannon” models) or a straight neck with a recessed trem. (If you’re looking for a ToM, it will have an angled neck).

Otherwise, with used guitars, you have to take them on a case by case basis.

 

[jaxadam]

Clearly you need a Jackson.

Last time I went to get one I walked out with a Toyota Tundra!

 

[budda]

Last time I went to get one I walked out with a Toyota Tundra!

Iirc your garage floor is insanely nice - which Jackson were you looking at?

 

[jaxadam]

Iirc your garage floor is insanely nice

Man I’m glad people remember the important shit!

 

[Marked Man]

I had a USA RR1 and also a Jackson professional (the good one full mop inlay and logo, ebony fb and binding). I enjoyed the US model (made in 91), but the pro was better in every way. Now that I’m looking at grabbing a Dinky my question to those who know US built Jackson well is which years are the most consistent?

I've never heard of any "bad" years for Jackson USA, although after about '93, the imports dropped WAY off in quality. They were no longer called "Pros" and were selling for about $550 instead of $1800.

Reason? These guys wearing flannel shirts took over MTV for about 6 years before Boy Bands and Wappers fought over the corpse of MTV after that, and you couldn't give away "Hair Metal" guitars for a while.

I wouldn't worry about any Jackson USA, you'll be fine.

 

[Crash Dandicoot]

Count the frets, usually a good indicator

 

[ZLE]

Little offtopic, but I really wish Fender would have done with Jackson what ESP did with Schecter: just hire a guys who knows what they are doing,stop breathing down their necks, leave them to do their thing and just collect the checks.

 

[narad]

Little offtopic, but I really wish Fender would have done with Jackson what ESP did with Schecter: just hire a guys who knows what they are doing,stop breathing down their necks, leave them to do their thing and just collect the checks.

Schecter pre-ESP:

Schecter post-ESP:

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Little offtopic, but I really wish Fender would have done with Jackson what ESP did with Schecter: just hire a guys who knows what they are doing,stop breathing down their necks, leave them to do their thing and just collect the checks.

That's sort of what they did, which is why there were so many problems right after acquisition.

Jackson was always somewhat of a cluster fuck, which is why for decades they were on the brink of collapse.

I just don't think Fender management at the time really knew how bad it was and figured as long as they paid rent and payroll Jackson would run itself. Obviously that wasn't the case.

 

[ZLE]

Maybe so (I did not know that was actually that bad) , but what they atleast had back then was fierce brand reputation, and slapping that brand on a 179$ piece of **** wasn't the way to go imo .

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Maybe so (I did not know that was actually that bad) , but what they atleast had back then was fierce brand reputation, and slapping that brand on a 179$ piece of **** wasn't the way to go imo .

The cheaper imports helped keep the lights on and helped them get into markets and dealers that normally wouldn't carry them.

You can't just make high-end stuff, not if you want to be a mainstream, international brand.

Doesn't mean that the cheaper stuff has to be junk, but again, that's Jackson and later FMIC's fault.

 

[msky]

He actually played guitar in a band but told me he wouldn’t tell me the name until I graduated. I was like “Tom Anderson, you’ve lost your mind, no one’s ever even heard of that shit.”

Did you ever find out what band it was?

 

[jaxadam]

Did you ever find out what band it was?

Yes, he actually did end up telling me the name not too long after.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

I had a USA RR1 and also a Jackson professional (the good one full mop inlay and logo, ebony fb and binding). I enjoyed the US model (made in 91), but the pro was better in every way. Now that I’m looking at grabbing a Dinky my question to those who know US built Jackson well is which years are the most consistent?

Once you filter out for age I don't think Jackson was ever super consistent, but new stuff isn't bad compared to anything much older, it's just really expensive and sometimes difficult to get vs. going used.

I don't think it's feasible to search for something only made by Shannon or Red on like a Tuesday or Wednesday when they had a good breakfast, but before a big lunch and they're in a great mood because they got laid the night before.

 

[1b4n3z]

I've had USA Jacksons ranging from 1986 to 2020 and it's a game of chance every time I think pre-covid those random flaws were priced in quite nicely but nowadays I'd actually rather buy new than used. Sure, getting one takes so long you forgot ever ordering a guitar but at least there is a return option (I guess, from abroad it's not so clear cut)

 

[kmanick]

I've been a long time Jackson/Charvel player and this is what I've experienced.

Imports - anything before 1995 is a no brainer , these were the cream of the crop Imports as were the Charvels. The Chushin Gakki factory was keeping pace with the USA shop
After 1995 you have to take into consideration that they started using cheaper parts and the QC wasn't aways up to snuff. (different plant making them) ,but I do have a 2001 SL-3 and after a pick up swap and dropping in a real german floyd, it's become one of my man gigging guitars, fantastic playing and sounding soloist, so there are diamonds in the rough out there.

USA- mid 80's - 2003 are the best I've played . I've lost count of how many post 2003 dinkys and soloists I "passed on" because the floyds were installed off center.
Really? c'mon Jackson
anything post 2015, buyer beware , I know a couple of Jackson dealers who tell me they have to send back about 40-50 % of the USA Jacskons they get in due to fret issues.
The Indonesian imports have truss rods that literally fall loose inside of the necks and the MIJ series ? not much better
So the best option if you're looking at buying new is to play them before you buy. I've played a few of the new American soloists and the Virtuosos. some were excellent, others were barely playable.
if you're looking at older used anything before 2003 is usually a safe bet ,but always look at the string alignment on the fret board.
Happy Hunting

 

[xzacx]

I can only speak on USAs, which I've owned an awful lot of going back to the late '90s. There will be a dud here are there from all eras, but the vast majority of the ones I've owned and played have been pretty consistently great—assuming you like the things that make a Jackson a Jackson. (For example, I far prefer Jackson necks to ESP, but a lot of people feel the opposite way.) But that's also why I've owned so many too, because I had good experiences with them and felt confident that whatever I bought was going to feel like what I was expecting and be well made.

The only real specific recurring issues I can recall are that in the late '90s/early 2000s they had some problems with Floyds being misaligned, which seams like a big deal but is actually a pretty cheap/easy fix—just needs doweled and re-dreilled. That's not always obvious from pictures, but easy to see in person, or hopefully a seller would be honest if it's not local. But you mentioned looking at DKs, which would be even less of an issue since you can just adjust the neck pocket angle yourself in about 30 seconds. The other is from the early 2010s (I believe that was the timeframe anyway), they had issues with some delimitation weirdness on the headstocks near the logo. This is obvious and easy to see in pictures, I've bought them with this and not been bothered, and they didn't get any worse. But if it's something that would bother you, it's easy enough to look for and avoid.

Here's a random example in this listing for reference: https://reverb.com/item/3331971-jackson-usa-custom-shop-rear-loaded-randy-rhoads-transparent-blue

Specs have changed a little over the years, like someone mentioning the earlier ones with top-mount Floyds, but they'e pretty much always been the same. Based on my own experiences, if it was me, I'd just look for color/finish I liked the most at a price I was agreeable to, and hope for the best without regard to when it was made, because I don't think the chances really change based on era. And if you're going used, it's hard to say how many people it's been through at this point—I always figure in a setup into that kind of thing, and it's just a bonus if you don't end up needing one.