got a late start, motor didn't want to start. I have thought about my strengths and weaknesses, and while I have a long way to go, I have acquired a good start on my trading education. The two biggest problems I have seem to be lack of concentration and impatience. using larger bar intervals has cut way down on the number of trades (sim) as opposed to a one minute bar. it just seems to slow everything down. I also closed down my other screen, if I'm unable to pay attention for 90 minutes then I shouldn't be daytrading. The results were good, this will be a work in progress but today felt good, comfortable, not rushed, I had my levels before the market opened ( in fact before the activity at 8:00) so I was content to wait for the market to trade to the areas I was interested in, while I am mostly in observation I couldn't help but notice price forming the TR at 49 the breakout was followed by a RET on the 1 min ( or if you watched the RT you could see it refusing to trade above 44.75 I'm amazed I've never realized the overlap on a higher time frame is a RET on a lower TF) anyway following the BO buyers must have gone to breakfast price dropped to 10.50 before buyers stepped in. price trades up to the 22 level which was a support level on the 3-4, at this point I had to leave. I have been around these forums for a while never having any success but not blowing up either, at times it seems so close its maddening to not achieve what seems so simple. I'm starting to understand you don't trade the market you trade yourself (something to that effect),
I have a lot of work to do lol.
boru's price action journal
- Thread starter boru
- Start date
The simple things that seem so obvious in hindsight. Now you're seeing price as a continuous flow instead of a disjointed brick on brick structure. It's a good sign. Movement will make more sense now and there's hope you'll learn to take advantage from this extra bit of clarity.
Now you see why 40D doesn't need the 1 min. For him 5 min gives the same information though it does take extra attention and focus to glean information from the thermometer gauge moving up and down.
Gringo
Last edited:
Yes as long as the larger bar interval is making hhs and hls or lhs and lls on the smaller bar interval you will see a RET depending on how much overlap. This was an observation that came about because I was watching so many charts ie the 60 a 15 and the 1 min. After reading fortydraws journal I wanted to simplify my screen, so working down from the daily to the 5 min, I mark my levels and have been trying to only watch the 5 min. It seems to slow me down mentally not so hyper if you know what I mean.
And one can toggle to a different size chart with a mouse click so its a work in progress, I would like to add its important to watch price move not just watch the bar form, db explains this much better than I could hope to, but watching the right tick on a 5 min chart just doesnt seem to distract me as much as watching a 15 sec or even a 1 min chart even though its the same thing. Long answer to a simple question I hope it helps
And one can toggle to a different size chart with a mouse click so its a work in progress, I would like to add its important to watch price move not just watch the bar form, db explains this much better than I could hope to, but watching the right tick on a 5 min chart just doesnt seem to distract me as much as watching a 15 sec or even a 1 min chart even though its the same thing. Long answer to a simple question I hope it helps
Last edited:
To be clear, the line graph lajax drew is what I mean. Aside from "overlap" and "retrace" I'm talking about the flow. That is what I see - you can show me a bar chart candle chart 5 minute bar interval 20 tick but it all comes down to that flow. Price action is not the O-H-L-C of an individual bar. It is the movement, the back and forth, the flow of it all. That is how you will see the higher high as it happens, that is how you will see the lower high as it happens. Focus on the flow, not the bar not the bar not the bar! Holy smokes, Lajax - go go go! I've actually given an exercise to gears to develop just this perspective further - to follow the flow through the bar - in spite of the bar(s).
Continuity of price is a real problem for those who have trading experience. Beginners have little to no trouble with it. And candles just make it worse. I developed a sensitivity to it by using 1t charts. Technically, of course, and ironically, tick charts don't "flow". There are gaps all over the place. Trades are continuous without being contiguous, but I've never wanted to get into that. Unnecessarily confusing. But it is worth knowing that when one sees a plunge or rocket bar that the trades that make up that bar are seriously gapped. This means that there's a lot of air in the bar, which is why price so often slides right through it on the way back.
But line charts are also good, particularly when it comes to "overlap". I'd be interested in reading about your exercise. It would be useful as part of the Trading By Price stickie at TL. With attribution of course.
He suggested that I "trace" each price bar as it formed to get a better flow for how price was moving. This snapshot is ugly, but it was my first attempt.I'd be interested in reading about your exercise (40D). It would be useful as part of the Trading By Price stickie at TL. With attribution of course.
Sorry for hijacking your thread, boru.
Continuity of price is a real problem for those who have trading experience. Beginners have little to no trouble with it. And candles just make it worse. I developed a sensitivity to it by using 1t charts. Technically, of course, and ironically, tick charts don't "flow". There are gaps all over the place. Trades are continuous without being contiguous, but I've never wanted to get into that. Unnecessarily confusing. But it is worth knowing that when one sees a plunge or rocket bar that the trades that make up that bar are seriously gapped. This means that there's a lot of air in the bar, which is why price so often slides right through it on the way back.
But line charts are also good, particularly when it comes to "overlap". I'd be interested in reading about your exercise. It would be useful as part of the Trading By Price stickie at TL. With attribution of course.
Gears attached a chart showing Part 1 of the exercise, and we'll get to 2 and 3 soon. I'll send you PM on Monday explaining it in a bit more detail.
There is a nice discussion between two bond traders - one who traded "upstairs," i.e. off a screen, and another who was "downstairs," i.e. on the floor in the pit. The pit trader, Tom Baldwin, gives a nice description of what is happening during those "seriously gapped bars" you discuss above:
Peter Borish: (Sarcastically) But, it opens @ 97. It says in the daily range that it’s from 97 to 98, how come after the number came out @ 97.04, I can’t filled @ 97.06? I want to buy a lot there!
Tom Baldwin: The reason you can’t is that is really not the market. At 7:29 am before the number comes out the market is at ‘x’ and then when the number comes out and its out of line, the actual market has a gap between where it eventually goes to and where it starts. And in between there is really nothing there because the market is now here. And most people are not accustomed to that jump and they are not aware that there is really nothing to trade there, unless it is by luck. i.e. there was resting order that happened to be there, doesn’t happen often. So you would never get filled at those prices. It would be very easy if when the number came out and you said gee that’s way out of line and it’s really bullish and I want to be long 1000 bonds, well the rest of the world is not stupid either and they see its out of line so they decide not to sell now. When it rallies a point then I’m going to sell it. Because that is where the market should go to based on that number. It’s like saying I wish I could buy 1000 bonds a point below market, but it’s not the market.
As to the "flow," this has been the most frustrating thing for me to explain to others. I remember back in your first SLA journal I posted a trade where price dropped out of a hinge soon after the open. My fill on the short was like 30.75. I posted the chart, and I posted my IB blotter showing the executions. I got a PM from one of my "troll fans" at the time basically saying "How the hell do you expect me to believe you got filled at 30.75? The low of that [1 minute] bar was 29.75" (or whatever - I'm going from memory here).
I replied "What does that have to do with anything? The lower high at 31.50 was the signal to get short and so I did at 30.75."
"How did you know that 31.50 was a lower high"
"Because price traded up to 32, then down to 30, then back up to 31.50. 31.50 is lower than 32. Hence, a lower high."
"But how did you know price was going to continue dropping? How did you know that 31.50 would be the lower high?"
"I didn't know that ... It was a lower high. I get short. I have no idea if it is going to continue lower or if I'm going to have to scratch it or take a loss."
"Fuckin' liar."
He was pissed because I wouldn't tell him how I knew something that I did not and could not know. I still can't tell you how I knew because I did not know. I never know if a trade is going to do me plus or minus. But I know if I keep taking them at the extremes based on LH's and HL's, my account balance will go up. That I know.
"How do you know ...?" is the wrong question, imo.
All price action related, Boru - nice journal, btw. Thank you for having us