NoDoji's Day Trading Log

Hi NoD ... nice trading as always.

A question about this ANF entry, if I may: I assume by "entry bar" you mean the shooting star on the 5-minute (10:10-10:15 bar, ET) ... would this mean you first saw that bar print an INTRA-BAR lower high (before it closed), saw it pull back, then anticipated it would go no higher before the close, and thus took your entry? Or was the completion of your 3-min shooting star (before the 5min bar closed) what got you in?

- Thanks.

 

I guess each trader has to find what works best for her own style.

On the topics of fading and scaling in, my philosophy is that there is a time and place for both, just like every other tool, if used carefully. Reading the market for when it's a good time for fading/scaling is an everyday part of trading, in my view. I'm not smart enough to know exactly where the market will turn or how many shakeouts the market's going to throw at me at a particular S/R level, nor good enough to get in and out multiple times without being chopped to pieces. Often there are multiple S/R levels in say a 3-point zone. I may choose to go in light at the 1st so as not to miss out completely, and add more at the furthest level, with a tight stop just outside of my entry. Of course discipline is key and you do have to honor your stops.

But the main thing is knowing when conditions are not conducive to fading or scaling, such as in runaway markets immediately following news releases, or conversely, when the market is steadily drifting one way with small bars and shallow pullbacks.

Just my .02.

 

Thanks, tomahawk!

I use 3-min charts for stocks. My entry bar wasn't a shooting star when I put on the initial position because that bar wasn't complete yet. I was simply following price action in which sellers stepped in quickly at a lower high, so I figured I'd sell short without waiting for full confirmation because with a stop above the HOD I was only risking .10.

Once that bar closed out I saw how strong of shooting star it was and the current bar started out green and quickly left an upper wick and turned red so I doubled the position right away.

3-min chart is attached.

 

Nice! .... and thanks for the annotated chart.

Any special reason why a 3-min chart for stocks? ... and you don't find the 3-min useful for futures?

 

I guess I've imprinted like a baby duck: When I first started asking BigHog "20 questions" about ES over a year ago and I eventually decided I might want to trade it, he told me to use a 5-min chart.



When learned about stochastics, I viewed 1-, 3-, 15-, 30-, and 60-minute charts, and settled on the 3-min chart as the one that guided me to the best entries and exits.

The only thing on my futures charts is volume and 20-period Keltners (whose central line mirrors the 20 EMA), although I often use a SPY 3-min chart with stochastics to provide additional confirmation on all my trades, whether stocks or futures.

 

Sounds good. Thanks.

 

+ $490

No chat this morning because I was ready to focus on ES live come hell or high water. It’s become clear that a) nobody accepts simbucks as payment, and b) IB simply will not let me transfer my simbucks to my live account.

Short 2 ES @ 1113.50, pullback from upper channel line overshoot and slight break through previous resistance. I placed a 5 pt stop because (Ammo and Flatron place wide stops; they are probably a bad influence on me) I believed that, based on the action I’ve seen over the past couple days, it was very possible stops above the overnight high might be run.

Imagine the look of surprise on my face as price indeed did just that and came within 6 ticks of my stop! I patiently stuck with the trade through the retracement to the 20 EMA (which was rapidly falling after the reversal off highs) and covered @ 1108.50 on a lower channel line overshoot, leaving a good bit more on the table, but very happy to take 5 pts x 2 and call it a trade for +$490.40!

I'm calling it a day because company coming soon and I need to emerge from my trading den and make the guest room presentable.

 

For the record, I used a 3-min ES chart this morning. The 3-min chart sold me on going short @ 1113.50. However, I later changed it back to the 5-min chart and had I been using the 5-min chart, I wouldn't have put on a short trade until that bit shooting star formed on the selling off highs.

So with my 5-min chart I would've been short about a point higher and would've taken no heat, thereby saving a few gray hairs.

 

Congratulations on the nice trade. 3-min chart, 5-min chart ... hey, it worked out either way, right? Surprised you took 14 ticks heat on 2 cars though ... quite a change from your former stated pain threshold.

I took a look at your Keltners on this trade ... have you ever considered a wider setting? ... I never use 'em, but at least for today, a setting of 20, 2.0 would've pretty much given you the HOD and LOD (as of 12:53 ET). It's obviously working for you on the tighter setting, but just a thought.

 

Hey, thanks for that Keltner setting. I was using 20, 1.0, but 2.0 definitely looks solid as a rock for entry and exit zones at reversals.

As for my "pain", after months of “every strategy under the sun” in sim, I hefted up my skirt, grabbed my balls and said “WTF, mate, I can do this!" My stop was 5 pts because I figured each breakout through R has been no more than 3 pts and that would take us to 1118.00 and provide me a couple ticks of wiggle room.

I truly regret not doubling down @ 1116.50 but I simply stared at my screen and thought, “Sh*t, could this thing top 20???” (Isn't that the best short signal of all, when you're actually scared to short?). I guess I needed brass balls for that move, like Ammo and Flatron who, I will reiterate, have had an influence on me for better or for worse:

Ammo: Short 1091, add 1094, add 1096, add 1102, add 1104, add 1108, add 1110…” He eventually exits at a profit on what’s probably a 1000-car position.

Flatron (Mr. Long) around the Thanksgiving panic selling: “Long 1096, add 1094, add 1091, add 1084…”
He eventually exits at a profit, but price dropped to 1067 before recovering and I realized that he must use at least a 50 point stop, or possibly no stop at all, figuring the worst case scenario is 0000.25.