the one thing you said that gets me thinking it may be the pantograph harness is you say when you are reaching out is when it fails.
I would start there first
ohming out the harness shouldnt be too hard
might take 2 people but still it should be relatively easy to check.
cut or crushed harnesses in pantographs is a fairly common thing, especially if they are not routed right or tied down correctly (out of the way).
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