Ken Bebensee began designing and building custom electric/acoustic guitars in 1984. In 1989, whilst studying in San Luis Obispo for a degree in Engineering and Industrial Technologies at Cal Poly State University, Ken Bebensee began his business, KB Guitars and Basses, in his garage. Since then, Ken has been busily building custom orders for many musicians including Robert Hurst, David Gross,  and as of 2013, completed 150 custom orders.  In 2001, Ken moved to the small mining town of North San Juan, located in Northern California. His shop is a renovated barn in the small community of Willow Springs near the historic North San Juan cemetery.