While testing beams I noticed they would often pass right though or partially through my target. With the increased beam ranges in .1792 this is even more apparent. It seems the farther away I get the less likely I am to actually hit.
Sometimes it hits deeper inside the ship, bypassing the exterior or sometimes it just goes through it completely.
This issue makes beams unreliable.
(old) youtube video: http://youtu.be/E9BwkOXeIew