MJM 4z

It’s hard to find a boat builder with a pedigree as steeped in boating history as MJM.

The brand was founded by the legendary Bob Johnstone, co-founder of J/Boats, and one of the industry’s true Wise Old Men. What Johnstone brought to his motorboats was a keen sense of seaworthiness coupled with clever, no-nonsense features that any boater regardless of experience would appreciate.

The company is now run by his son, Peter Johnstone, who has done admirable work ensuring that the brand-new 4z is right in line with the family boat building philosophy. At 46 feet, 8 inches length overall, the 4z is just about perfect as a weekender. She has a galley-up layout — excellent for socializing — and four separate entertainment areas, which is a helpful attribute when entertaining larger crowds or when you just want a change of scene. The 4z also has multiple outboard power setups and a blistering reported top-end speed of 43 knots.

“It’s just a great boat — great for entertaining and great for speed and seaworthiness,” says Tom Ervin of northern Michigan’s Walstrom Marine. “It’s got the enclosure, so it’s excellent for the Great Lakes, plus a heated and cooled cockpit, which is also nice because we can get such a wide range of temperatures here.”

Ervin is also impressed with some of the boat’s features, such as side-boarding doors, flip-out windshields and sliding side windows.

“Some of the design elements we see on these boats, you don’t really see them anywhere else,” he says. “I truly believe that MJMs are some of the best boats out there, and that this 4z will be popular, and rightly so, on the Great Lakes.”

Only time will tell of course, but if history is any teacher, the odds of Ervin being correct are looking pretty good.

DEALERS