Our rookie team has achieved most of our conservative goals for functionality and we would like to try to scale the tower. However, we have ZERO experience with scaling (or any of this for that matter) and the student & mentor ideas are all over the place. One kid even suggested we fire a grappling hook Batman style up to the bar.
From what I've seen on CD, everyone seems to be using a winch. One of our mentors wants to use a scissor lift with an actuator (we have a 12" Dart) but the vibe I've gotten from reading threads on here regarding scissor lifts is akin to
the old lady in "Princess Bride" that yells "BOOOOOO" in the courtyard. Why is that? Do they fail often?
How do most teams do this? How exactly do we use a winch? Where should the winch be with regards to the center of mass on the robot? What are the most common failures when scaling?
Basically, we would love any advice, ideas, telescoping tubes, extending arms, scissor lifts, CAD for all of the above, or whatever else you think might help us achieve the (nearly) impossible considering we have a low-bar capable robot that only stands about 14.5" tall.
Thanks in advance not only for the advice, but all of the other epic threads we've been devouring as we laugh, argue, build, and clean metal shavings out of our hair each night.
Own your words. - Joe Johnson [more] 
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