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Tools for forexhard's Stairstep Breakouts system

  • #61
  • Jul 21, 2011 11:08am Jul 21, 2011 11:08am
I downloaded and do see the new continution box.
  • #62
  • Jul 21, 2011 11:15am Jul 21, 2011 11:15am
Thanks for going to all that trouble Redwing. A file purge solved the problem.

@Squalou

1) Is there any way to make the price tags follow the same colors as the objects they are attached to? When I change the box colors around, the tags just stay your default colors.

2) Please add another line of text to the chart info graph. It should read either "Box ATR On", or "Box PIPS On". Same line, but reading one of two ways. This way I can see at a glance which setting I have turned on for highlighting the CZ's.

This indi is really starting to take shape! Amazing work, as always!

FxH
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To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #63
  • Jul 21, 2011 11:22am Jul 21, 2011 11:22am
One thing I notice with the current version: My example is a long trade. We have the consolidation box. If the price breaks out of the box or the extension the EA takes a trade (which is good). But if price retraces and then goes back through the top of the continuation box the EA takes a trade again. This is not really a breakout trade because there's been no new consolidtion (Although in this case a big winner).

But based on FH's strategy I think a trade is made 1 time coming out of consolidation. please correct me if I'm wrong.

Sandy
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  • #64
  • Jul 21, 2011 11:57am Jul 21, 2011 11:57am
Quoting nubchai
One thing I notice with the current version: My example is a long trade. We have the consolidation box. If the price breaks out of the box or the extension the EA takes a trade (which is good). But if price retraces and then goes back through the top of the continuation box the EA takes a trade again. This is not really a breakout trade because there's been no new consolidtion (Although in this case a big winner).

But based on FH's strategy I think a trade is made 1 time coming out of consolidation. please correct me if I'm wrong.

Sandy

This is the simple way the EA is coded right now:
Either always on (UseSafetyFeature=false), or 1 trade and then close shop (UseSafetyFeature=true).
I did not test this option yet, so this how it should behave.

The 3Tier derived EA will have all sorts of trade limits inputs, so you can play with them.

Sq
  • #65
  • Jul 21, 2011 12:06pm Jul 21, 2011 12:06pm
Quoting squalou
This is the simple way the EA is coded right now:
Either always on (UseSafetyFeature=false), or 1 trade and then close shop (UseSafetyFeature=true).
I did not test this option yet, so this how it should behave.

The 3Tier derived EA will have all sorts of trade limits inputs, so you can play with them.

Sq
O.k. squalou. Thank you. I am pretty sure I had UseSafetyFeature = true and it took these trades on demo. But I did switch it to off later. I willwait.

I love the indicator for manual trading
Sandy
  • #66
  • Edited 12:23pm Jul 21, 2011 12:13pm | Edited 12:23pm
@Nubchai,

First a comment on your chart, and then I'll answer your question...

Your chart shows too many CZ's. I suggest that you tighten up on your filtering parameters. Either add bars, or lessen the CZ pip height, or lessen the ATR settings, or some combination. The CZ is everything to my system. We look for only the very best CZ's to trade from. I expect only 2 or 3 per time frame per pair. So if I have up 3 pairs on M15, I'm only expecting about 8-10 great CZ's per week. More if I'm also using M30 or M5 at the same time, of course.

As for how I trade the breakout, I have never confided this yet, but I'll do so now: I use the prevailing side of the CZ as a pivot upon breakout. So if price breaks Hi, then the upper edge of the CZ (plus any Buffer Zone pips) becomes my pivot. I wait for a candle to close above this line. Once I get this close, I enter my trade Long. My SL/TP is usually 25 pips, but it depends on a couple of outside factors that I will leave blank for now; it's better if you find your own best settings from pair to pair and time frame to time frame. But if my SL is hit due to an early reversal, I'll look to re-enter in the opposite direction.

Note: In my system we never use the phrase "False Breakout". There is no such animal. There is only a breakout that hit your SL before it hit your TP. And once you get the hang of picking out the best CZ's, even those become very rare.

The key to my system, is that if you wait for the very best Consolidation Zones, an immediate breakout of 20 or 30 pips is highly likely. 10 or 15 pips is practically guranteed -- IF... if you wait for the very best CZ's. And if you don't get all of those 30 pips on the breakout, then you have the pivot to look forward to. The market (people/traders/banks) hates indecision (i.e., pause). No one likes to stand still, least of all Alphas. Alpha-types hate not being in control. It is our job to locate those moments of extreme indecision and exploit them once direction out of the pause has been fixed by the guys (Alphas) trading 500 lots or more.

That's my live trading in a nutshell. YMMV.

FxH
To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #67
  • Jul 21, 2011 12:59pm Jul 21, 2011 12:59pm
Here are 2 prime examples of the CZ's you can locate with Squalou's indicator. There were created by the exact same filter settings. One is from July 7 and one is from today. Both are from G/U M15.

Note: These settings are extremely tight. Probably as tight as I would ever set them in fact. But just look at how absolutely perfect the CZ's are! Would you not be willing to risk higher lot sizes on set-ups like these? What is better, quantity or quality?

FxH
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To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #68
  • Jul 21, 2011 1:49pm Jul 21, 2011 1:49pm
Quoting forexhard
@Nubchai,

First a comment on your chart, and then I'll answer your question...

Your chart shows too many CZ's. I suggest that you tighten up on your filtering parameters. Either add bars, or lessen the CZ pip height, or lessen the ATR settings, or some combination. The CZ is everything to my system. We look for only the very best CZ's to trade from. I expect only 2 or 3 per time frame per pair. So if I have up 3 pairs on M15, I'm only expecting about 8-10 great CZ's per week. More if I'm also using M30 or M5 at the same time, of course.

As...

Thanks very much Forexhard That's very helpful. I used the default of 4-60-30 for the length-timeframe and range. I'll start working with that to get better CZs. It's also helpful to know that taking the reverse trade if an early SL is hit is a part of your system.

Thanks again
Sandy
  • #69
  • Jul 21, 2011 2:13pm Jul 21, 2011 2:13pm
Nice work!
i like forexhard`s trading style.
-> @ Demo


EDIT:
As an idea of setting the TP, we could use squalou`s indicator values: "avg.buys*0.75" for buys and "avg.sells*0.75" for sells.

cheers
  • #70
  • Jul 21, 2011 9:55pm Jul 21, 2011 9:55pm
Quoting squalou
more cosmetics...
now draws a "box continuation rectangle" on each Box (selectable color with BreakoutBoxContColor),
and price labels at the right of the last box continuation rectangle and breakout lines (if Bufferpips is !=0);

There was also a bug in the hi/lo swing which would update at every new hi or low without removing the previous hi or low.

And hopefully i fixed the issue with continuation lines not redrawing.


Attachment
Sq
Thanks for this. turning off the statistics doesn't seem to work - it still displays on the screen, could you fix that?

TIA
  • #71
  • Jul 22, 2011 1:35am Jul 22, 2011 1:35am
@Squalou and Steve-

You two guys are talking about combining my system with some of your earlier robots. So before you do, I want to spell out how this works so well for me. And Steve, I hope this information will help you better prepare for your next round of backtesting too.

OK, so let's start this discussion by assuming everyone here knows precisely how to set up Squalou's indicator so that it only displays the very best CZ's. And for a CZ to qualify it can only be 30 pips high, or less, and contain no less than 22 M15 bars. Mine usually have 25. Like I said, I want only the very best.

Right. We're staring at a live CZ forming right in front of our eyes. The box, in order to form must contain 22 bars. So, on bar #26 the price breaks high, and that candle also closes above the line, and so I open a Long with an equal TP/SL of 25 pips.

But wait. Before my TP is hit, the price reverses and goes all the way down to knock out my SL.

But let's break this down:

CZ formed - check.
CZ height is 30 pips - check.
Price broke Hi - check.
Candle closed above the breakout line - check.
How many pips over the line did the candle close? 6 pips - check.
TP/SL was 25 pips both ways - check.
Price retraced and took out my SL - check.

So question: Where was my SL postioned when it was hit? Where on the chart was it?

Answer: It was 25 pips below where the breakout candle closed, which was 6 pips above the breakout line, which means that my SL was 19 pips below the breakout line, which means that I am once again sitting exactly dead center of the Consolidation Zone. Get it? I'm right back to where I started! But the Consolidation Zone hasn't moved. I just went for a little ride, but now I'm right back to where I started from.

So question: With a super tight CZ, how many of these reversals will happen before price finally chooses a direction and takes off for a good 50 pips or more?

Answer: Dunno. None? 1? 2? 3? But the attached pic shows a breakout from earlier today (July 21) which is a pretty clear example of what to expect.

Like I keep saying people, it's so easy it's hard.

FxH
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To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #72
  • Jul 22, 2011 1:51am Jul 22, 2011 1:51am
And what have we here? Looks like G/U is working overtime this week. Here's a picture perfect 30-pip high CZ forming as we speak. I'll be going to bed before this breaks out, but I'll posts pix tomorrow of what happens with it.

Perfect. Like I drew it by hand.

Good nite, everyone. See you tomorrow...


FxH
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To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #73
  • Jul 22, 2011 3:14am Jul 22, 2011 3:14am
Picture-perfect trade - missed the earlier losing breakout because I was not trading. Let's see where this goes.

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  • #74
  • Jul 22, 2011 5:03am Jul 22, 2011 5:03am
Here is the outcome of the trade. The green line represents the tp; you can see it nearly got there before retracing to what had been the sl at the box mid-point.

I got out with +2 because I use mptm with js 10 adding bep of 2. Now I am back waiting for another breakout.

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  • #75
  • Jul 22, 2011 7:01am Jul 22, 2011 7:01am
Quoting squalou
This is the simple way the EA is coded right now:
Either always on (UseSafetyFeature=false), or 1 trade and then close shop (UseSafetyFeature=true).
I did not test this option yet, so this how it should behave.

The 3Tier derived EA will have all sorts of trade limits inputs, so you can play with them.

Sq
I get the following message in my 'Experts' tab;

2011.07.22 13:57:40 Cannot open file 'Crogram FilesMegaTraderexpertsindicatorssqDynamicBreakoutBox.ex4' on the GBPUSD,M15

I downloaded the indi from SQ, and the EA from post1 from Steve and put these two on the chart, any more I need to do besides wondering what will happen?
  • #76
  • Jul 22, 2011 8:33am Jul 22, 2011 8:33am
My bot stopped trading for some reason. But I woke up early to manually trade the EU and GU short breakout. Beautiful!
  • #77
  • Jul 22, 2011 9:17am Jul 22, 2011 9:17am
Hi everyone..
same here..it was working yesterday. EA opened a trade perfectly then stopped working overnight. Strange...I also used EA from post 1 but with sq new indi. Settings are the same on both. Sq indi works really good. Seems EA doesnt pick up sq boxes anymore.
Pls if anyone could help with this it would be very nice. Thx
  • #78
  • Edited 9:57am Jul 22, 2011 9:46am | Edited 9:57am
Strange...the EA just took a GU short trade.
  • #79
  • Jul 22, 2011 10:17am Jul 22, 2011 10:17am
Here's what I woke up to. It's basically a repeat of yesterdays moves: A move Hi (white arrow), then back to the center (red), and then a breakout down of over 50 pips (53, according to Squalou's indi).

Very typical, and very bankable.

FxH
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To improve is to change. To perfect, is to change often.
  • #80
  • Jul 22, 2011 10:20am Jul 22, 2011 10:20am
Hi..I don't usually trade GU..and I certainly don't want a a short on this pair atm..
at least EA opened a trade with you..still nothing here..guess more coding work for me :-)
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