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Clowns ES Daytrading Journal
- Thread starter ESclown
- Start date
Can you post a chart of your entry exit and a 15 min chart? could you also post a screen cap of your charting layout? Do you solely use price action with the tape for entry? do you use market profile at all?
Quote from smalltrader35:
Can you post a chart of your entry exit and a 15 min chart? could you also post a screen cap of your charting layout? Do you solely use price action with the tape for entry? do you use market profile at all?
I will post lots of charts tomorrow feeling bit worn out and bit in pain right now, gonna relax.
I can PM you my layout as I'm not sure everyone wants to see that. (will PM you it tomorrow).
I use price action solely - moving averages is only indicator is use but i don't base decisions on it, it just helps me identify what other players are seeing and can keep you on right side of market.
I use the tape, but its sometimes probably better to ignore it. I know everyone thinks they can be a great tape reader but I'm not so sure, i have been reading it for a long time now and there is much conflicting information given with the tape. Often better just to keep it as simple as you can and focus on price.
Players often tip their hand where they will come in at certain levels on the chart. I usually wait for a zone that i myself want to enter and then see how other players react. Note, the entry must be based on a predefined play in you play book otherwise your just hoping and playing gut entries which often are losers in long run.
Market profile is great and amazing, most of my swing trades are based on MP in conjunction with price action.
I know anyone can look back and show you how easy trading can be but look at the 1min chart and ignore all others (or looks at whatever volume or tick chart you prefer). Connect the trend line from 13.30 onwards and simply buy from a bounce of this zone.
I know this sounds silly as everything is different in real time but sometimes i really think we all confuse trading way too much and that's what makes it so hard. Looking back at a day you can see how simple it really can be. Again this is very easy to say with hindsight.
If you want to analyse the day, then understand that bears got destroyed when they could not break 58 on the big push down at 14:44. Levels play pivotal role in trading as other players of different time frames watch key zones and prices. It shows you who is in control.
Basically, i took a shot at a few longs with tight stops and much bigger rewards. Minor trend was up since 14:00 so i stayed with the longs until this trend changed. I got stopped on a long but lost very little and pursued the same side again. Its just probability if your going to win - don't take it personally and just accept that you were wrong. If trade still remains then re-enter at favourable level again with good R:R. Rinse and repeat - again very easy to say.
See my terrible Friday trading where i was picking bottoms as what can happen when your psyche changes.
Good trading to all.
great stuff. I will forward on a screen cap of my own layout for your thoughts.
Clown,
If you don't read tape what then do you base your "price action" entries on? I read you look at at flags which I understand, perhaps wrongly, are technical chart formations. Would very much appreciate a PM with a screenshot of the chart (for the intraday trades only) you use for entries.
Very enjoyable journal by the way. Thanks for your contribution to the community.
If you don't read tape what then do you base your "price action" entries on? I read you look at at flags which I understand, perhaps wrongly, are technical chart formations. Would very much appreciate a PM with a screenshot of the chart (for the intraday trades only) you use for entries.
Very enjoyable journal by the way. Thanks for your contribution to the community.
Quote from ESclown:
Flipped long at 56. Looking for nice bounce here, will get out quick if it cannot break 58.
Well we have broken the intraday down trend line, still need to break 1360 if we gonna go higher.
Looks prime for a bounce considering the Friday rally spike was retraced back to 44 - that allows more time frames to get long at a favourable price. No point ever getting too excited about a single time frame rally like that on Friday - too many people focus on what just happened to price without the realisation that not many time frame market participants were involved in the move e.g. value still remained lower and price will always drag to value and then react.
This bounce should hopefully break out of this 70 zone. I would feel more easy with this long if that financials were not looking as bad as they are.
Nice trade... I'm interested to know more about your thought process here as I was actually short around this time. I was seeing the failure to break 65, then LH, LL, then another LH, divergences on several of my slow indicators, and then the failure to break 59 from 14:14-14:22. I was looking for a break of the swing-low trendline (about 52). 14:24 was a signal to get out, but IIRC I got stopped out once the rally blasted off. I honestly never thought to go long before 14:24-25 and considered it a fairly safe short. In retrospect it was foolish and one of my biggest problems is still constantly expecting changes in the dominant trend, even though these happen pretty rarely.
Also, where did you place your stop for this trade? If I had gone long at 56 I suspect I would've been stopped at 54.5...
Quote from Specterx:
Nice trade... I'm interested to know more about your thought process here as I was actually short around this time. I was seeing the failure to break 65, then LH, LL, then another LH, divergences on several of my slow indicators, and then the failure to break 59 from 14:14-14:22. I was looking for a break of the swing-low trendline (about 52). 14:24 was a signal to get out, but IIRC I got stopped out once the rally blasted off. I honestly never thought to go long before 14:24-25 and considered it a fairly safe short. In retrospect it was foolish and one of my biggest problems is still constantly expecting changes in the dominant trend, even though these happen pretty rarely.
Also, where did you place your stop for this trade? If I had gone long at 56 I suspect I would've been stopped at 54.5...
Nice question. Will try to answer this one before i go to sleep.
Firstly looking at longer term charts, we had crazy late rally on Friday. Also, not a huge elliottician but 5 waves completed in our consolidation pattern. 5 waves often signifies the end to consolidation or at least higher probability of a break-out. Again this seems simple but can improve odds in your favour when picking longer term entries.
Attachments
Now we narrow this down into 15min chart. We had rally Friday which was in 2 time periods on market profile. Value remained lower, also longer term value was higher at 59-60 (which i think i mentioned would be a nice sell into zone on early Friday).
When we have those types of rallies price eventually drags back to top of value zone or at least retraces majority of the spike.
Here i had place the FIB analysis with my support line on Sunday. I was looking to get long of a bounce of either 42 or 46.
These were the points i marked down as potential entry zones for my swing entry, both marked pivotal support and both had confluence with fib numbers attached to them.
I was not here for the actual entry so i missed my swing entry.
When we have those types of rallies price eventually drags back to top of value zone or at least retraces majority of the spike.
Here i had place the FIB analysis with my support line on Sunday. I was looking to get long of a bounce of either 42 or 46.
These were the points i marked down as potential entry zones for my swing entry, both marked pivotal support and both had confluence with fib numbers attached to them.
I was not here for the actual entry so i missed my swing entry.
Attachments
Now we get to the real entry chart - the 1min.
When i returned i saw was to jumpy and tried a short as i saw the trend as down and i had incorrect entry trend line drawn. I tried a limit sell at 54.25 giving me tight stop.
Then after i was bit more composed and in sync with market i checked all longer term time frames. Price had retraced the Friday rally to my support zones. Also, bounced of the 51 zone, so could technically form a 'W' on the 15min which is quite powerful.
I re-drew the correct trend line in this triangle, however, with very bullish longer term pattern. That's when i posted that i was wrong with my initial short and silly for taking it.
Price bounces of 51, re-enforcing longer term charts, then breaks minor down trend-line and off the horizontal (first red line) support. Some may even see this is a minor Head and Shoulders, i see it as strength coming in, especially when price jumps of now the top of the minor down trend line.
That is why i said 53.25 would have been a great entry.
Well i wanted to be long but was a little silly with my entry. Instead of waiting for test of 2nd red horizontal line - which is now very minor 1min support. I entered to soon as most traders do as they only think about missing the move not favourable entry conditions.
Now to the stops: i always have strategic stops. Usually from 0.75- 3 points. Always place them outside the very minor noise to improve chance of entry succeeding. In this case my stop was at 1354, which i think was 2 ticks outside that horizontal red line. If it broke that zone then i know my position has been violated and now not as strong as it was before. Therefore, i am out and will wait for new confirmations of entry.
I always look for a reason where price moves which will invalidate my initial entry. I never just place a standard stop, but they must be small regardless.
On the 1min chart it is often looking at minor trends in price, that means don't focus on the big picture but what the smaller time frame is telling you (don't do this on trend days). You could see from 1.30pm minor trend was now up, longer term charts are now bullish. 1min chart shows when price breaks a minor resistance and then bounces of that resistance which is new support often tells you to get in with the direction price is travelling.
Hope any of this helps, will post more tomorrow if you have any new questions. Will answer and post the PMs on all other charts tomorrow.
When i returned i saw was to jumpy and tried a short as i saw the trend as down and i had incorrect entry trend line drawn. I tried a limit sell at 54.25 giving me tight stop.
Then after i was bit more composed and in sync with market i checked all longer term time frames. Price had retraced the Friday rally to my support zones. Also, bounced of the 51 zone, so could technically form a 'W' on the 15min which is quite powerful.
I re-drew the correct trend line in this triangle, however, with very bullish longer term pattern. That's when i posted that i was wrong with my initial short and silly for taking it.
Price bounces of 51, re-enforcing longer term charts, then breaks minor down trend-line and off the horizontal (first red line) support. Some may even see this is a minor Head and Shoulders, i see it as strength coming in, especially when price jumps of now the top of the minor down trend line.
That is why i said 53.25 would have been a great entry.
Well i wanted to be long but was a little silly with my entry. Instead of waiting for test of 2nd red horizontal line - which is now very minor 1min support. I entered to soon as most traders do as they only think about missing the move not favourable entry conditions.
Now to the stops: i always have strategic stops. Usually from 0.75- 3 points. Always place them outside the very minor noise to improve chance of entry succeeding. In this case my stop was at 1354, which i think was 2 ticks outside that horizontal red line. If it broke that zone then i know my position has been violated and now not as strong as it was before. Therefore, i am out and will wait for new confirmations of entry.
I always look for a reason where price moves which will invalidate my initial entry. I never just place a standard stop, but they must be small regardless.
On the 1min chart it is often looking at minor trends in price, that means don't focus on the big picture but what the smaller time frame is telling you (don't do this on trend days). You could see from 1.30pm minor trend was now up, longer term charts are now bullish. 1min chart shows when price breaks a minor resistance and then bounces of that resistance which is new support often tells you to get in with the direction price is travelling.
Hope any of this helps, will post more tomorrow if you have any new questions. Will answer and post the PMs on all other charts tomorrow.