Friday's profit of 5.5 points seems like a small amount ($27.50 b4 commissions) and it is in the MNQ. But it was captured over 30 to 35 minutes. Now had this been the ES and it could have just as well been, then 27.50 X 10 comes to $275.00 over 30 to 35 minutes. Apart from that small time period, later on and even before then, there were multiple opportunities to make that amount and even more over and over. This is what can make scalping lucrative. FOT. I call making 1 to 8 points in the ES a scalp. There are traders who would say; "that is not a scalp." "A scalp is one or two ticks." Back in the day that used to be so but those days pretty much ended when trading went from fractions to decimals in the markets in 2001. Then with the event of HFTs scalping (at least for myself) got redefined. It is too difficult to scalp 1 tick and make money. I now call scalping capturing 1 to 8 points (at least that is so in the ES). I call 1 to 8 points "manual HFT" LOL. The thing about it is that scalping 1 to 8 points combined with the concept FOT it can become quite lucrative because of the potential of multiple opportunities and the potential for high win rate. I in. I am out. I grab the profit. I don't get greedy. It doesn't matter what happens afterwards. There will be many more opportunities. A few minutes ago, I was just looking around on YouTube and happened to see a video that a young man made showing where he scalps 1 point using just one technique in this video. That technique he uses is: Scalping two-legged PBs in channels. I don't know the guy and not sure I ever heard of him but some of you may be interested in this one technique he uses. It does flow well with concepts and techniques I use in trading. Often times the market will try 1 to 2 times maybe even 3 time to move in a direction and if it can't do so then it will try moving in the opposite direction. That one idea is what can make such a technique as this young man uses good tool to have in one's toolbox. IMO Just saying.... I think it would work better in broad channels when using a 5m TF or if a narrow tight 5m chart channel a trader could dial down to 1m TF and possibly make it work there. Because the moves would be multileg on 1m TF in channels that are tight narrow channels on a 5m TF. I think his video was some sort of tick size chart.
I mean't MES in post #2181 not MNQ when discussing small amount of profit at the beginning of the post.
Three families camping out in a secluded wilderness reserve in the south and I took two live trades (which I don't usually mention whether they are live or sim) capturing 5.75 in MES. My internet is slow way out here, so it is taking a while for the video to upload as it is about 18 min long. When it gets done processing, I will post it with explanations and comments therein. Does sound like much but look at it this way. Should this be ES that is 287.50 in a few minutes. I want to show that these principles can work on small accounts or large accounts. I will refrain from making more trades until I get this video processed and posted. There have already been more long opportunities, but I am wanting to get this posted. And MDW is calling me for breakfast. No far to go to dining room in my 40ft MH. Kinda like a scalp! LOL
Here is the video. I think I am going to go outside. Maybe fish some. I don't want to just stay inside and trade. It is a beautiful sunny day out here in the woods at this wilderness reserve. I will make a short video telling what has happened since these two trades, but I have taken no more trades even though there were opportunities. .
In my journal I don't remember dealing Indepth with trading wedges and micro wedges in the NQ, MNQ, ES, and MES. When there is a little volatility trading wedges can be profitable. That usually means trading them the first two hours or the last 1.5 hours of the session. But they can be traded anytime as long as there is sufficient volatility to "see" the patterns, execute a trade and make a scalp. As a matter of fact any trader who can learn trading wedges may be able to do quite well $$$ wise at doing so. Even a retail trader with a small account can possibly make money. Trading wedges on a 1m chart embodies the principles of grabbing what the market gives you, FOT (of which I have already spoken of many times), averaging down at times, and averaging up at times (adding to a winning position). If a trader's brain can think clearly and focus intently for 2 hours a day it is possible to just trade this one technique and make money. Once a trader learns how to do it. Nothing is a guarantee in the markets but there does exist great consistent possibilities. This is because the market tends to probe back and forth all session long and these patterns form as a result of that probing. Usually, the initial risk and profit target will be upside down but at times the actual risk endured will be less than the profit gained. Below is a chart on trading wedges this morning 11-08-2024 in the MNQ and trading very small size 1 to 6 contracts and extracting gross $302.50 (151.25 points) within the first two hours. Most trades were 1 to 3 contracts. It was 82 fills in total (all buys and sells, all shorts and covering). IMO trading over 6 contracts in the MNQ it is better to just trade 1 NQ contract. Because of commissions costs. That said, many retail traders can only trade MNQ vs NQ because of their account size. I won't go into a lot of detail on the individual trades on the chart so you will just have to look at it and figure out what I did. But here are a few things to understand and help you see what I did here: 1) short markers are red and covering are blue. 2) long markers are green and exits are orange. 3) on 1m charts there are usually much FOT (frequency of trades) that is why a couple of hours of intense concentration is all that is usually needed. 4) Blue lines highlight the wedges on one side of them. 5) Basically, a wedge is 3 pushes up or down. Sometimes 4 and on more rare occasions 5 or 6. It may not even look like a wedge, but it is a wedge if there are 3 pushes up or down. 6) on wedge bottoms the idea is to go long 1 or two ticks above a bull bar (i.e. signal bar) after the bottom has been made. So, the entry bar is 1 to 2 ticks above a good signal bar. This is done because PA is showing strength in the direction you want to see it go. That said that is not always feasible, but it is the ideal. A triangle is a horizontal wedge. A wedge is a slanted triangle! 7) wedge tops are for shorting after the top has been made and downward momentum is shown by a bar going below a bear signal bar. So the entry would be 1 or 2 ticks below a bear signal bar after the top has been made. If the signal bar is large (showing strong momentum) the wait for an PB on the same bar before shorting on the next bar. The opposite is true on bear wedges. That means if the signal bar on a bear wedge is large wait for a PB on the same bar then go long. Usually a 50% PB on a bar is generally good enough but sometimes an even bigger PB can happen. The point is that the fact there is a big signal bar signifies that momentum created that bar and it's low or high will likely subsequently be tested enough for a decent scalp. 8) Trading wedges on 1m charts require quick decisions and intense concentration. Grab what the market gives and do not worry about early exits (I marked a few on the chart). There will be plenty more wedges to trade before noon. 9) Don't forget the larger context. I often overlay wedges in price action with a TR rectangle or channel lines. I like to know where the wedge is forming in the larger context. The chart can get cluttered but once TR and channels no longer applicable to the immediate context they can simply be deleted. I did leave the yellow bull channel lines at the beginning of the chart just so you can see them there. 10) If trading more than 6 contracts in MNQ or MES it is usually best to go to NQ or ES because commissions. Not telling anyone or suggesting anyone trade this way. I am simply showing how I like to trade wedges. And giving an explanation...of sorts. Note: I also updated profit in points at that particular point in time so you can see the progression as the trades were carries out. Finally flat to flat % was over 87% though I did lose on a few entries. A high win rate is necessary for profitable scalping IMO.
Here is what happened later after my trades. Today was a good day to continue trading wedges if one had a mind too and their brain wasn't tired. I have highlighted by numbering the wedge points on some of the wedges.
I don't trade other people's money. I trade my own accounts. This journal is to show "how" I trade. To show techniques that I use. I am not telling anyone to trade this way. Some traders would not like it neither agree with it. That is their prerogative. Others might find it amusing or entertaining. Others may find it stupid. Others may find it garbage. All viewpoints others may have about my techniques or methods of trading are fine with me. I am just journaling. To anyone reading my journal and any posts I make: You can lose money in the markets. Nothing is guaranteed. Do not trade the way I trade! I am not an educator. I am not a vendor. I am not interested in trading anyone else's money.