My technique is based upon observation and simple data analysis. Look for underlying concepts that may be valid and test a range of ideas/parameters based on those concepts, and see if there is any consistency. You can get ideas from books and articles, however one of the best techniques is just to record observations at the end of every trading day, and then examine them with data. If you do this every day for 6 months, you will likely start to discover patterns. You can then plan each day according to the analysis of where your edge is in that market for that day under different scenarios. If nothing is there, don't trade. This is the approach that has worked for me.
Well, I've gotten fairly good at reading price action with constant volume bar charts so far. As long as the market makes at least a moderate sized move I'll AT LEAST break even if not squeak out a small gain. It's when the market gets real choppy that I can have problems. The CVB charts help reduce the choppiness fairly well, but they're not perfect by any means. I thought that trailing stops could help reduce most losses during those conditions because a trade would have to immediately go against me and reach my stop loss in order to hit a maximum loss. So, how do most of you manage your trades during choppy market conditions?
Scalp for 1-1.5 points. All in, all out. And if the trade doesn't move in your favor quickly, get out with a scratch or small loss. Trading in the chop--especially a very narrow one--can be hazardous to your account.
A dynamic trailing stop that is adaptive to the underlying volatility do work fine with the ES in any time frame. Did implement one which uses the ATR indicator. If you want the code for Ninja Trader or ProBuilder drop me a line (the implementation is pretty simple so it can easily be ported to other platforms and languages).
If you use trailing stops, make sure you put them in TECHNICAL areas. It's easy to get sucked in to the emotional game of take profits and "protecting" your profit. If you trail the stops behind retracement levels with strong spt/res, you'll be ok. Make sure you know the possible retracement areas and the strongest potential areas. Also ask yourself if you're comfortable holding through the retracement. For example, I'm not willing to give up more than 3 or 4 points. I'll usually close and look to re-enter on the pull back. On the other hand, I know guys willing to hold through 10-15+ retracements. My nerves just can't handle that! lol... Best luck... Chris