starborg9

To be prepaired for whatever may come. more than one timeframe is needed. If one only trades on a 5min chart, what may seem as a trend may be jusr a pullback or a retracement on a 30min timeframe. If you have both you can trade the trend on the higher one, or if there's no trend you can define the box on it, and scalp on the 5min between the box high/low using slow stochastics, which was developed specifically for sideway markets when trading came to a virtual stand-still after the Great Depression (stochs are useless in a trending market). For newbies, it serves to practise and master one setup first that they can quickly and easily identify, and not get bogged down in complexities that can confuse, delay, and even paralyze. Been there. Once you achieve confidence using one setup, add another. Or not, many successful traders have only 1 or 2.

I daytrade eminis and use 3 timeframes YM 1296t 432t 144t, plus ES 5400t for lead/SR. I use adaptive average (10). I tested other MAs/EMAs, no contest. I enter when it curves up/down from being flat a while, in sync with a zero line cross on the detrended oscillator or MACD (Linda Raschke's 3/10 settings), confirmed by slow stoch cross-over, preferably at extreme point/off SR/pivot point. But my trigger indicator is the DMI with ADX combo (super-imposed) with extreme settings: DMI 6.8.8 ADX 10.4,19 on Sierra Charts (standard settings are too slow). I arrived at these settings after backtesting every possible permutation. The trick is to get the topDI to jump over the ADX line or at least touch it and turn up; play with your settings until that happens, it should be a very visible signal! No matter where all other indicators point, if the ADX is not moving up, there's no trend and you are dead in the water. This ADX is more reliable than Bollinger Bands at any settings, and a whole lot better than the squeeze indicator, which tends to join the party too late. I compared.

Patient: Doctor, it hurts when I do this. Doctor: Then don't do it.

Thanks for sharing. My observation is that It's more than just smoothing.You can't count on "normal"' conditions in trading, and it takes just one anomaly to hurt you badly. I will always prefer tick charts to timed charts. If I used a 5M chart today I would have really been screwed after the FED rate announcement. I find that the most important thing for me is to have a routine well within my comfort/confidence zone. I read that the pros never change their strategy once it's tried and tested, their goal is to be able to trade while half asleep w(hich happens a lot to me, as I live in San Diego).

If you tweek the DMI/ADX you get a awesome indicator. I chose the DMI settings Length=6 Avg Length=8 and the superimposed ADX are Length=10 Moving Avg Length=4. The result is a clear and visible signal when the top DI jumps over or touches the ADX at the start of a trend. I can handle the 144, but I find it not very profitable, so I'm now playing with the 1200/6000 combo and it looks extremely promising. The concept is good, you have to find your own comfort zone. Good luck to all of us.

An article in last month's SFO magazine recommends that you trade the 144 tick chart in the direction of the 2097 tick chart. I tried it, it works where nothing before did (I tried lots of combos).I added the 610 ticks in the middle to give me more entry/exit options, and I'm still experimenting with this (looks promising). I also tested and backtested with 144/400/1200ticks; it looks god too: more profitable (earlier entry) but riskier (too early entry). My additional and most important rule is that I only trade if the ADX tuns up on the 144 (from the lower level the better), signaling the start of a trend. I don't trade countertrends, as they mostly are pullbacks (I trade them when the ADX turns up again = continuation)..

Hi, I just started trading the e-mini S&P index future ES and I'm rather conflicted about which 3 time frames to use for S/T M/T and L/T charts. I'm now using 233ticks, 5min and 15min. Do you have a better suggestion? I truly appreciate anything and everything you can contribute to my education. Thank you!