Beach Lander Hull Design

What separates a bow-loading hull from a conventional shallow-draft tender.

Published

Most boat hulls are shaped to keep the bow up and the running surface clean of beach. A beach lander is the opposite: the bow is engineered to plant on sand, take the load of a steep ramp drop, and let the rest of the hull behave as a normal planing platform when the boat is back in the water. The geometry that makes that work is more specific than it looks.

The forefoot

The forefoot is the section of hull from the stem back to roughly 30 percent of the waterline. On a normal planing hull this region is sharp and deep, both for soft entry into chop and for tracking when the bow is unloaded at speed. On a beach lander it is flatter, broader, and often armoured. Three things follow:

  1. Slamming changes. A flatter forefoot pounds harder in chop above one metre. Most beach landers are limited to coastal day work because of this; long crossings in head seas are uncomfortable.
  2. Bow buoyancy goes up. A wider forefoot displaces more water at the front of the boat, which keeps the bow from burying when the ramp drops and guests step forward. Without it, the boat squats nose-down with weight at the bow and the ramp rises.
  3. Beaching geometry is predictable. A forefoot that is broadly flat sits down on sand evenly. A vee forefoot pivots on the keel line and flops to one side or the other.

The bow shoe

The forward 1.5 to 2 metres of keel takes the grounding load. Builders address this with a sacrificial bow shoe: a hardened laminate, sometimes with a stainless or composite cap, that absorbs the abrasion of repeated beachings. Replacement intervals depend entirely on the beach pattern. A boat that grounds on coarse sand and gravel needs a new shoe every 200 to 400 hours; one on fine white sand can run for 800 hours plus.

The shoe is part of the spec sheet you should ask for explicitly. A builder who waves it off without a number has not run the calculation.

Keel rocker and the running surface

A beach lander needs to plane efficiently when it is in the water and bear evenly on a beach when it is not. Those two demands pull in opposite directions.

The compromise most builders make: a flat or near-flat keel line for the forward third, transitioning into a moderate vee through the midships, then flattening again at the transom for low-speed planing efficiency. The stern is typically running 12 to 16 degrees of deadrise, against 18 to 22 on a similar-length open tender.

This costs ride comfort at the bow, gains low-speed handling at the stern, and produces a hull that planes at 16 to 18 knots rather than the 22 to 24 of a conventional vee.

Where the design choice shows up in the spec

When you read a beach lander spec sheet, the load-bearing numbers are:

  • Forefoot deadrise at station 4 (40 percent of LWL from the bow). 6 to 10 degrees, against 18+ on a normal tender.
  • Transom deadrise. 12 to 16 degrees.
  • Bow shoe area and material. Square metres of contact, plus the laminate spec.
  • Forward draft at FAL. This is what determines how close to the beach you can plant before the rest of the hull is on sand. 0.4 to 0.6m is the working range.

If any of these numbers are missing or hand-waved, push for them before signing a contract.

See also

What is a bow shoe and how often does it need replacing?
The bow shoe is a sacrificial hardened laminate, sometimes with a stainless or composite cap, covering the forward 1.5 to 2 metres of keel that takes the grounding load. Replacement intervals depend entirely on the beach pattern: a boat grounding on coarse sand and gravel needs a new shoe every 200 to 400 hours, while one working fine white sand can run 800 hours plus. Ask for the shoe area in square metres and the laminate spec explicitly. A builder who waves it off without a number has not run the calculation.
Why does a beach lander ride worse in chop than a normal tender?
Because the forefoot is flatter, broader and often armoured rather than sharp and deep, it pounds harder in chop above one metre. That flat forward section is what lets the bow plant evenly on sand and carry the load of a steep ramp drop, but it gives up the soft entry a conventional vee provides. Most beach landers are therefore limited to coastal day work; long crossings in head seas are uncomfortable. It is a deliberate trade, not a shortcoming in the build.
What numbers should I insist on before signing the contract?
Four figures carry the design. Forefoot deadrise at station 4, which is 40 percent of LWL from the bow, should sit at 6 to 10 degrees against 18 plus on a normal tender. Transom deadrise runs 12 to 16 degrees. Bow shoe area in square metres plus the laminate spec. And forward draft at FAL, working range 0.4 to 0.6m, which determines how close to the beach you can plant before the rest of the hull is on sand. If any of these are missing or hand-waved, push for them.
How does the hull shape affect planing speed?
A beach lander planes at 16 to 18 knots rather than the 22 to 24 of a conventional vee of similar length. The compromise most builders make is a flat or near-flat keel line for the forward third, a moderate vee through midships, then flattening again at the transom for low-speed planing efficiency. Stern deadrise typically runs 12 to 16 degrees against 18 to 22 on a comparable open tender. That costs ride comfort at the bow and gains low-speed handling at the stern.
Why does the bow need extra buoyancy forward?
A wider forefoot displaces more water at the front of the boat, which keeps the bow from burying when the ramp drops and guests step forward. Without that volume, the boat squats nose-down under bow weight and the ramp rises, which defeats the point of the platform. The flat forefoot also makes beaching geometry predictable: it sits down on sand evenly, where a vee forefoot pivots on the keel line and flops to one side or the other.

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