BennyHey

Great post BrownsFan. I think most nubie traders start with a set stop (ie. a 20 pt stop on the ym.) As you gain experience you realize sometimes this is too small a stop and when the mkt is really slow this may be too BIG a stop. The more I delve into Profit Targets and Stop placement the more I realize how important it is . Personally I wish I would have not spent so much time in my early trading days looking at 100 of indicators and moving averages to get entries and realized that with proper trade mgt. entries could be taken on a coin flip and still be profitable.

When you want to mess around a little get on your simulator and try and get in and out of a 200 car trade. You will see what I am talking about. Even though your orders are not in the mkt its still hard to get in and out. NOW imagine if you really had 200 buy orders sitting there>>> Hope ya'll are having a great weekend. I am stuck in yet another Chicago snow storm .

Someone buying or selling 50-100 e-mini contracts is just as likely a large retail as it is institutional action. I live in Chicago and I know 2-3 guys who own seats on CME and are hardwired to the exchange. They all trade 100-200 mini lots at a time. One of the biggest guys on the floor that trades his own money(ie. not a hedge fund with investors) trades 100-125 BIG S&P 500 lots at a time. Its hard for me a 2-4 lot trader to wrap my head around this kind of cash but there are plenty of them out there. A funny story relayed to me was the guy who trades 100-125 BIG lots had 30 BIGS on and went to lunch. HE DIDN'T HAVE A STOP ON. This was the kinda money he could afford to lose. That said, I read tape as part of my trading. One 50-100 lot coming across the tape catches my interest. But it is not enough to really move the mkt. I just try to watch order flow and get a sense for the direction of the movement. Keep in mind that the big boys scale in and out of positions 3-4-5 cars at a time. A Big position is enter and exited the same as many small positions.

Thanks for the post WRR. "Drawdown Minimizer Logic" makes a lot of sense. The only potential problem might be that it does not take into account the current volatility of the market being traded. Cheers

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Here are a few free resources to increase your understanding. Hubert Senters from TTM has some good ones on their site under the free video section: http://www.tradethemarkets.com/public/department61.cfm you'll have to do some looking around but they are there. Here is Alex from Pure Tick with a few nice videos: http://puretick.com/BB2/viewtopic.php?t=381 I'll look around for some more.... I think there are a few good ones on youtube.com believe it or not.

I got a couple PM's asking for Tape reading resources here is the reply I sent: Hubert Senters from TTM has some good ones on their site under the free video section: http://www.tradethemarkets.com/public/department61.cfm you'll have to do some looking around but they are there. Here is Alex from Pure Tick with a few nice videos: http://puretick.com/BB2/viewtopic.php?t=381 I'll look around for some more.... I think there are a few good ones on youtube.com believe it or not.

Don't know if anyone is still watching this thread but I have started to watch tape more during my daytrading and can see a clear advantage to it. At first I did not like it as it would have the same effect as having CNBC on in the background would have, make me close out a good position early, or not take a trade I should have. That said I have read a couple books and watched numerous books on the subject and I now believe it gives me an edge. I use the tape to help my timing on my entries ie. I will try and make up for the spread by timing my entries on dips or pops on the bid and ask. As I continue to learn I will try and post something a little more helpful but the main idea is to watch the highs on the ask and lows on the bid. Having said that the tapes is only useful to intraday scalping. If you are trying for 3-14 day swing plays a tick or two wont make any difference toward the overall profitability of your trading.

Thanks for the info DarthTrader. Guys obviously your stop placement will depend on what style/time frame you are using to trade with(ie. daytraders will differ from swing traders who will differ investors) that said I am more interested with the methodology used that pertains to your individual style. I know Larry Williams (Day trading) always closes all his trades at the close of the futures session(4:15est). Hope all u guys have a great 08' and new year. I am looking forward to continued learning from my fellow traders and (hopefully) increased profitability. May your limits be filled and your stops not hit. Benny Hey Hey;)

BTW.....I do not use this indicator as it give too many false signals, I have attached a 3 min. chart with the showme and oscillator on it. Red dots are bearish divergence blue are bullish. Bars will not paint till the end of the bar.

Yes I purchased the better TRIN indicator. Like any indicator it works some of the time and the key to making it sucessful is knowing which signals to ignore. The TRIN package comes with an oscilator and showme study that shows when there is divergence between advance/decline and the futures mkt price. Reply if you have any specific questions.

Looks like a scam to me...some guy selling a trading system that works great after the fact. A few live trades or a statement would give a little more creditability IMO.

I wanted to start a thread on stop placement. I know the most popular answer would be placing it behind the last swing high or low, but I wanted to hear what other ideas are out there. A few I know of are using ATR as a guide and using 2% of total acct size. I know it is totally dependent on what type of trader you are, investor, swing trader, day trader etc. but I would appreciate any new ideas either that your using yourself or have seen or read about. Best of luck guys can't wait to see some responses

You mean Walter does not have a time machine?? Well good timing never was my forte.. BTW...I am currently testing Walter's method on demo as it is similar to a method I used with great success on the ER2 b4 the CME lost it. One question I am having is where to put stops as behind the last swing high/low leads to a very unfavorable RRR. If anyone has tried this or a similar idea please PM me so we can talk a bit.. Good Luck Y'all

Oh my GOD!!!!! What a fantastic set of Indicators. Walter love all your stuff, I don't know how u find all this stuff but keep it commin. Blu-Ray is amazing for coding all these things for us...I see indicators not 1/2 as good being sold for $500-$1500 apiece and up. again just wanted to say thanks!!!:thumbs up::thumbs up:

Great Stuff Walter and Blue-Ray!!!!!! I have been lurking on the board for a few months and wanted to give credit where credit is due. What a wonderful Board that has been set-up here for all of us to discuss our ideas. As far as the "chimps micro-scalps" I have been testing it live on demo acct. Biggest problem I've been having is there are too many whipsaw trades and too many signals. Anyone else been having same problem/possible solutions?

Whats with the 3 posts?

Love this thread, keep it going guys.

Most companies want a deposit b4 u can see a live feed. I have a demo thru Global futures