My scaling out is usually 50% at initial target, and the rest with a trailing stop that I move up below resistance. Seems to work for me. Steady and consistent is my goal.
i thought this should have closed this thread. i guess as a noob i have lots to learn. IMO the question to ask is whether one's position size is determined partly also by market conditions? Or, are there trades that are superior to others and hence we commit more capital (similar to card counting in blackjack). If the answer is yes (which i believe it is), then scaling out is obviously needed.
I don't see what the fuss is all about. The people on here that do make a profit from their trading do it using a lot of different methods including scaling in and out it doesn't matter. Keep doing what you are doing. It is you who pulls the trigger on each trade. It is you who either wins or loses a trade. You know what makes you money so don't change a thing. Personally I don't scale in or out but since I don't fund your account or manage your trades it should not matter to me how you do things.
Clearly you are confused, did you understand my question? Do you actually make any money trading, you seem to lose more than you make according to the PnL thread. So tell me why should I/we listen to what you have to say?
I think you misunderstood my sarcasm about posting here again, it has nothing to do with your question, which was a very good one. I quoted what you wrote but was not really responding to you -- I guess that was my bad. You don't have to listen to what anyone says, even if they make money, it's what will be useful for you. You need to figure out how someone who trades technically on weekly/monthly charts will help you on your intraday trades, or if what he writes just fits his own way of trading. To get back to your question, you must consider the asymmetry of your entry vs exit. Do you attempt to catch every single near-term reversal in your market? Of course you don't, because at times significant turns occur that are not preceded by whatever entry signals you use. Now, if the market doesn't know/care whether you are in a trade or not, then you must assume that there will be turns that you cannot anticipate, that happen to occur while you are already in a trade. This explains why you can have near "perfect" (in regards to your trade methodology) entries, as you've waited patiently for all your ducks to line up, but afterwards likely have no such luxury in dealing with your exit -- the added uncertainty is a justification for scaling your exits. Getting back to what I wrote earlier -- by your previous post you assume that b1s2 often attempts to reverse his profitable positions: if you assume this then you must resolve the contradiction of how he advocates scaling one's entry but not the exit, when in a reversal situation they are one and the same. Whether you have a converse position you need to liquidate first before you take that next signal should have no bearing on whether or not you should sell whole or partial, the trade should be the same.
Reversals begin happening and prices still drift higher. Scaling in is a fantastic strategy to get the short position on at better prices. I don't necessarily reverse when I get out at full position. I may be on the sidelines looking for a good signal to get in while I am in another market or two.
A few calls have been sold, but it's very few at this point. I will be gradually scaling them in well out of the money and I will let you know when I am full bore. In the meantime, while I hold my position, expirations come and go and the process is reevaluated.
i've missed alot of pages on this thread, but it sounds like you are in favor of scaling into a position and against scaling out. Do i understand correctly?