Rudy Pensa opened "Rudy's Music Stop" on 48th Street in New York City in 1978. Rudy made the first "Pensa" electric guitar in 1982 - the R Custom and sold these from his shop. In 1985 Pensa began a collaboration with John Suhr to make Pensa-Suhr guitars until Suhr left to join Fender in 1990. During the Pensa-Suhr years, Rudy teamed up with Mark Knopfler to design the MK model - updated again in 2000 as the Pensa MK2.

Source: Pensa Custom website (18 December 2018)