Hello Bob, I normally don't use this machine at a beach but can tell you it would work fine so long as you stayed away from the wet sand. Being a land machine it does not have the curcuits needed for hunting salt water and black sand and would act unstable. But in the dry sand you should have no trouble in most parts of the country. Expect good success if you over lap your swings by half or more.
HH,
Sandman