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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
Thanks for checking back .
If I would have known ahead of time how potent that last sell signal was then I would be retired now. (highsight shows that the signal was at very high resistance levels on weekly charts and had high potential for stacking down.
As it turns out, reality set in and I overtraded to the long side the whole way down! Doh! End result = LOSS .
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
I've been reading various threads and came upon one that is holding my interest. It is 'Building and equity millipede' by pipEASY (Graeme). I have been trying to use some of the concepts that are being presented on Graeme's thread. I'm not sure where this will go for me but to follow are some of the trades I took yesterday. . .
I had one position from down around .8900 that survived from the day before.
Seeing price move up to around .9000 I took the break out of the candle marked on the 5min chart. I then began to move to BE and add to the position using buy stops.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
There is nothing like the feeling of seeing a 10pip sl trade move 200pips!
I had four positions on but have taken some off the table to support my over-entry habit .
Some things to work on for me: Not so many entries in range period and more aggessive stacking when price is moving my way with momentum.
I was sitting at the computer when the real momentum started last night, it was clearly visible on even the 1hour chart. It was hard to not just sit there and watch. In fact the my first reaction was to start looking for the reversal!
One really nice thing about tight entries is my average loss per trade has dropped from around $11.00 to around 8.00 and will continue to drop with more practice. Without a doubt average wins will go up too. The funny thing is my current 'accuracy' over total account history is 60% wins on sells and buys but I was in the hole! (because my average wins exceed my average losses in the past). So I can see that it is extremely likely that my accuracy will drop (given excess sloppy entries) but that over time these tight entries that go for hundreds of pips will get me back on track.
Thanks to Graeme and his thread - I now have a clear goal in mind when placing trades. It turns out to be the old addage 'cut your losses and let your winners run'! Timing of entries will be something to continue working on and probably will never be perfected. However, I think that trading this way is very forgiving in the end. Reading his thread has helped me to put it into perspective. Credit where credit is due - Thanks Graeme.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
I take it back. . .seeing a 10pip sl trade move 400pips is even better than seeing it move 200pips
Still sitting on a trade from .8811 I've moved my SL up a bit to lock in around half of the current move.
Managed a couple of breakeven plus-a-pip trades and one that ran 70pips or so before I moved SL close enough to be hit.
It is nice to see my equity curve moving up again despite my overall drawdown. The learning process has been long but I think I am on the right track. I use very small lot sizes to preserve capital while I build confidence in my trading abilities.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
Just to update the above trade. I closed it at +860pips (.9675). Price is currently over .9720! Patience was key, this trade was held over 4 weeks.
I tried many times to add to the position but was unsuccessful at keeping them open for any amount of time. I am finding 10 or 20 pip SL very tight. Also losing alot of trades at BE and then seeing price continue in my intended direction. Perhaps moving to BE too soon.
Working on using more pairs and watching for better entry points.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
Even though my account is still down (due to lot's of rookie mistakes) I am pleased with my current position (+800 on three small positions ). I am still building confidence in using tight SL's usually around 10pips or less to find a 'runner' but I think the efforts will pay off in the end. I find I can take many small losses to get in on a large movement and when I do get it right then only one or two trades will pay for a lot of bad entries, and sometimes even can give gain to the account balance. I believe this concept to be universal.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
For instance, I could easily enter a long here (because of the upward momentum) and put a small SL as indicated in the trade window.
If I'm stopped out, I was wrong, but I lose very little <10pips!. If I am right and the breakout is volitile I can win many more pips back than those that I lost before that trade. Time will tell if I let it. Key also is to not overparticipate by entering too often.
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Joined Feb 2008
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Status: Determined.
|667 Posts
I know one month is a short time but I really like what I see here.
Fewer wins than losses but an overall gain to the account. This is what I must continue to strive towards because not having to be right more than being wrong is a great relief.
I've tried to eliminate personal data and leave the interesting stats.