Some of us make a living fading those patterns. Everybody and their mother (btw ... happy mother's day) knows about bull/bear flags, wedges, pennants, double bottoms/tops but guess what; those patterns don't always work. In fact, the times that they don't work offer the greatest profits many times. Also, the risk to reward ratio is in the favor of the trader who trades against the pre-disposed direction of the technical pattern. In other words, if I see a bull flag developing and I fade it, my risk is lower than the trader who is long. And if the market fails, while all of the longs are scrambling to cover, I'm cleaning up. To answer the question of "Making a living on ES/NQ 5m reversals/flags", ..., my answer is yes, but not how you think.
So you're saying that you gave up daytrading ES? That's your decision, if so, and I'm not about to try to persuade you to change your mind - I just know that the conclusions you've reached based on your own experience don't justify the categorical statements you made earlier. Also, maybe I was just a horrible trader, and have known a lot of horrible traders, but to me losing 20% in your first year day-trading a relatively small acount doesn't sound so bad - cheap education if you can build on it. Many successful traders have busted out completely one or more times. If I had started with less, I might have busted out, maybe more than once. It might have been better for me - though, as the saying goes, there's something about the prospect of imminent destruction that focuses the mind, so maybe I would have gotten religion earlier, and survived. Anyway, this is straying off topic now, so I guess I'll leave it at that.
I doubt a 5k vs a 25k account really makes much of a difference. If someone is a consistent loser, then they'll lose all of it over time.
no way!!!!!! you can't make a living doing this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! why do you think timberhill branches out to retail business. trade the etfs such as qqq, spy and dia instead.