What is the best product for day trading futures NQ , YM or ES?:

[Handle123]

Do you let the some of winners run or do you just use fixed profit target?

On systems I have made before September 2016, all day trading methods have been fixed targets as I been able to get better consistent returns and I been slowly going towards more automation, now I am 99% automated. But mid term stock and option methods are both of taking half to 25% off at targets and long term been reduced to 25% from 50%. Methods am working on now are even of some target based and much wider targets. It is more of personality, you trade for a few decades and just get use to trading a certain way. Day trading is most costly way to trade as the fees add up especially if doing retail, less so leasing or owning seats. When doing long term anything, could be months for Commodities to years in stocks before having to pay for commissions.

Growing up, somehow we taught more is better, but when trading, it is different, it takes a great deal of energy to sit in front of the screen and still be able to concentrate. Too many think you have to do this. If one nets $100 per lot doing fifty lots time 240 days per year, this make over one million per year. Too many are lax with their funds, too many let price hit their stops instead of trying to loss a tick less, too many eyeballing greatest amount of points when they should be concentrating on risk, getting losing percentages as low as possible, you can make money getting one tick for breakevens. Forget about of what you could have made, and concentrate on what you can make, have to learn to accept what market will let you have. Anything outside of day trading, I hedge, I rather make little less profits on the underlying but have a smaller losing percentages. All my trading now is based on risk management first.

 

[bmw335isedan]

On systems I have made before September 2016, all day trading methods have been fixed targets as I been able to get better consistent returns and I been slowly going towards more automation, now I am 99% automated. But mid term stock and option methods are both of taking half to 25% off at targets and long term been reduced to 25% from 50%. Methods am working on now are even of some target based and much wider targets. It is more of personality, you trade for a few decades and just get use to trading a certain way. Day trading is most costly way to trade as the fees add up especially if doing retail, less so leasing or owning seats. When doing long term anything, could be months for Commodities to years in stocks before having to pay for commissions.

Growing up, somehow we taught more is better, but when trading, it is different, it takes a great deal of energy to sit in front of the screen and still be able to concentrate. Too many think you have to do this. If one nets $100 per lot doing fifty lots time 240 days per year, this make over one million per year. Too many are lax with their funds, too many let price hit their stops instead of trying to loss a tick less, too many eyeballing greatest amount of points when they should be concentrating on risk, getting losing percentages as low as possible, you can make money getting one tick for breakevens. Forget about of what you could have made, and concentrate on what you can make, have to learn to accept what market will let you have. Anything outside of day trading, I hedge, I rather make little less profits on the underlying but have a smaller losing percentages. All my trading now is based on risk management first.

For day trading method especially for ES, how much risk reward ratio do you go after? How many ticks must go in your favor in order to put stop at one tick above entry price?

 

[volente_00]

ES is the best to me because of the liquidity even in afterhours. YM is just to thin and whippy.

 

[Handle123]

For day trading method especially for ES, how much risk reward ratio do you go after? How many ticks must go in your favor in order to put stop at one tick above entry price?

Depends on system, systems where it is targeting 2-3 ticks, can't really lock in one tick, but if not filled at small targets, after so much time, system exits at one or more ticks. Systems where targeting 2 points, price has to go farther than 50%, your back testing will tell you. On systems where target is $1000 to $10,000 exiting 25% of the position, once it gets to breakeven plus on tick, it never moves, I have had protective stops same place for over five years, trailing stops are used by either inexperience nervous traders or advanced traders who have well back tested Trading Plans. Longer term systems where they started on Monthly and eventually intraday charts were used to fine tune entries, stops are kept on weekly charts as I use patterns only on them for exits, so am looking for much larger profits of 75% of range of last 9 years to reverse.

On all day trading methods, risk has always be greater than targets, but you work at risk management, you can concentrate on seldom having large losses thereby increasing size.

 

[tiddlywinks]

On all day trading methods, risk has always be greater than targets, but you work at risk management, you can concentrate on seldom having large losses thereby increasing size.

If there are more than a handful of ET'ers reading that understand this statement, I would be very surprised. It is a truth however. Day trading, one needs to allow some wiggle room, even if that wiggle amount exceeds the targeted amount. Of course, you can also nail every entry, which certainly happens, but I would doubt the survival of a day-trading plan that requires nailing every entry.

 

[Handle123]

If there are more than a handful of ET'ers reading that understand this statement, I would be very surprised. It is a truth however. Day trading, one needs to allow some wiggle room, even if that wiggle amount exceeds the targeted amount. Of course, you can also nail every entry, which certainly happens, but I would doubt the survival of a day-trading plan that requires nailing every entry.

Most retail traders who do like 8 trades a day on 5k account, have to exceed 100-150% just to breakeven on the commissions and that does not include slippage. People will not do the math cause that will spoil their dream of unbelievable riches day trading and not having a real job. Then you have to either have very consistent way of either making homerun trades during the month or be knocking down over 80% success to overcome losses and commissions. In my case in the end of a year, I will average less than three ticks a trade which is really incredible and if it was not automated, I be sliding into not day trading cause of age, am slowing down and not as quick as I use to be. But when you add up all the loses, breakeven trades and wins, all this time and monitoring for less than three ticks doesn't sound like worth the time, but year after year, that is what it comes out. And why I advise anyone who even thinking of day trading would do better in long term trading, if for anything, much less commissions and let gaps work for you more than against you.

 

[bigsnack]

I think you are looking at WAY too many different things. I tend to agree with TRO, in that trading can be made very simple. Pick the prices that you want to do business at in advance, and then have some idea of what you want to see at your prices which will constitute an entry. After that, backtest and see what you get. I ended up on ES long ago, as I got used to looking at the chart, and then when I started watching the DOM for ES and couldn't look at anything else since I had gotten used to how the ES behaved. If you focus and you make all of your screen time productive, you are going to discover something that will work for you. In my opinion you only need 1 chart for one time frame only, a few horizontal lines, and criteria for an entry at said lines. DONE.

Or, if you actually get to the point where you can be very accurate with your level picking. Just take a trade at every one and let risk management take care of the rest! Both work if you learn how to pick the right levels.

 

[Overnight]

Just do it on a reduced market like, for example, MGC as opposed to full GC. The two instruments mirror each other in price action. This way, if you are wrong, the pain is reduced 10-fold. The gains are reduced 10-fold also, but makes for great live practice.

Could also try QM vs. CL. What works on the one will work on the other. Why try a live plan on a huge one before testing it on the smaller one?

Small moves, Ellie. Small moves.

 

[affan]

Nothing compares with /ES. It is the king of all kings. Very liquid even though its such a huge contract. /ES options are also very liquid and usually only have a .50 spread.

 

[Handle123]

I like ES best cause of the volume, but I think NQ might be a little easier to trade for newbies cause it more sloppy due to lack of volume. Instead of learning how to make several points, work at ES making 4 ticks couple of times in first 45 minutes and walk away, or 8 ticks couple times in NQ and walk away, build up your account slowly till you build $3000 then add another lot. On Friday, first 17 bars gave the best time to find bars to give needed ticks. Netting $90, doing 50 lot makes over mil in 240 days, one year of trading. I think too many think they have to make bunches of points to make decent living.