I tried searching the Babypips forums on discussions on this (excluding those that are simply meant to sell something instead of discussing VSA)but did not find a dedicated forum on the subject. (please lead me to the page if I am mistaken)
I can’t seem to find information on this. I’m reading Tom Williams books but he often refers to conditions in the stock market which I am not sure will apply to forex. Yes there are forums on other websites, but I prefer to the trusted gurus of babypips!
No, you’re right. There are no really worth wile threads here on that subject.
I know ForexFactory has a few, but in all honesty I believe that Tom Williams book covers everything we need to know.
Below are some links to posts I’ve made, don’t know if they’re of any help:
http://forums.babypips.com/106100-post164.html
http://forums.babypips.com/106101-post165.html
http://forums.babypips.com/106723-post168.html
http://forums.babypips.com/109421-post177.html
I should add this: I’ve moved on and don’t trade according to VSA methodology, BUT reading that book was how I finally understood exactly how and why the markets behave as they do.
It’s a must read IMHO.
Isn’t there a petefader (sp?) that trades with VSA here on Babypips? He’s got that 1500/month pip thread or something like that.
Yes there is, but that thread exists mostly for him to push his paid services. Unusual…
Not much to actually learn there.
Posting my trades and why I took them…not much to learn? …ok I will try harder, lol. 
EDIT: Maybe you’re right. I will put together some more educational material on VSA in my thread. -Pete
Well, looking at your later charts it’s now hard to see price for all the squiggly lines. I wouldn’t exactly say that you trade the original VSA method.
Personally I’ve moved up to higher time frames, so your kind of trading doesn’t interest me.
Some more edu stuff would probably be a good idea, just don’t copy/paste like so many others do.
Yes, I have taken VSA, s/r (murry math, pivits, fibbs) and some emas (squiglys lol) and made my own approach, not that I invented any of it…just my custom rsi. I also look at larger TF, but I like the 5min for entry.
Hello o990l6mh,
As you well know: I LIKE BOOKS!!! So: I’ve just downloaded Tom Williams’ book ‘The Undeclared Secrets That Drive The Stock Market’. Odd isn’t it i.e. it would seem that you need to have the surname of ‘Williams’ to make it in this business!!! LOL!!! (And yes: I’ve downloaded it i.e. I’ve ‘paid my dues’ when it comes to buying books)!!!
Anyway: I’ve only JUST started reading it but I thought that I just had to let you know that I found it ‘uncanny’ that within the very first pages the issues that I mention on that other thread are noted.
Thanks for the recommendation. Let’s see what THIS book and THIS author has to say!!!
Regards,
Dale.
Hi Dale
Yes, maybe we should change last names!
I think you’ve made a good choice reading that book. Maybe not necessarily the method itself, but the authors explanation of how it all works was like a light bulb switching on to me.
Don’t forget to have a serious look at the James16 way of trading. After the time I’ve spent so far learning (which is but a fraction of your time) I’ve come to believe that there’s no better way to trade for me, than that.
Hello,
I must tell you that I’m about a third of the way through the book and there is some VERY SOBERING information in the first few chapters (about market makers and professional traders and how THEY operate). I like the way it’s explained too.
Thanks again.
Dale.
Good (Sunday) morning,
I did not manage to read MUCH more last night before going to bed BUT as I went to bed I kept feeling that I’d read about all of this before (VSA). When I awoke it ‘dawned on me’. (This happens A LOT I’ll tell you. I go to sleep with a ‘trading issue’ and awake with the possible solution. Maybe THAT’S my TRADING problem i.e. maybe I don’t get enough sleep. Either that or this business has slowly been pushing me ‘over the edge’)!!! LOL!!!
Anyway: BILL Williams developed an indicator that I THINK is ACTUALLY BASED on what we are NOW calling VSA. HE called it his ‘Market Facilitation Index’ or ‘MFI’. Here is a link to a basic (VERY basic) description of his MFI:
(This indicator is part of MT4’s ‘standard’ indicators).
Take a look and see what you think. I’m not saying that it IS VSA but it sure looks like an ‘attempt’ at VSA based on my reading of TOM Williams’ book thus far. (The ‘kicker’ is that BILL Williams developed this MANY years prior to 2000).
What I CAN tell you is this: I coded this indicator (from my BILL WILLIAMS BOOKS) into my trading platform and spent many days assessing its merits. What I CAN tell you is that its signals are EXTREMELY accurate for stocks i.e. where you SHOULD have (I do have) the CORRECT VOLUME data. I cannot comment on its accuracy for forex pairs because I don’t have ANY volume data for forex pairs on my platform.
(I’d not bother with the REST of ‘Chaos Theory’ i.e. it’s trend following ONLY and, to be honest, I’ve never understood just WHY the MFI was presented as part of ‘Chaos Theory’ i.e. the MFI can and should be used on it’s OWN).
Anyway: just a thought. Take a look and see what you think. If I’m wrong about this then I apologise. If not: then maybe you (we) already HAVE a form of VSA available to us. The ‘trick’ is to know how to use it correctly!!!
I shall be reading (Tom Williams) further now.
Regards,
Dale.
Edit:
You know that while I was reading Tom Williams’ book yesterday I was even MORE DUMBFOUNDED by some of the input given on that other thread of mine i.e. where the suggestion was made to NOT read books on the subject!!! This type of information IS NOT something that a ‘new trader’ (or anyone else without YEARS of experience for that matter) is simply going to ‘piece together’ by staring at a chart all day!!!
VSA does’nt work don’t waste ur time Wyckoff was an exceptionally talented trader thats why he was successful not because of VSA
VSA is completely unproven this Tom Williams guy basically jut tries to sell you his software in his VSA book. He claims to use whyckoff’sprincipleas but it got him no where.
The VSA gang at ff started out with a bang but now they’ve become so desperate they’re trying to sell mentoring services. Despite knowing advertising for mentoring services is against the rules at ff they’ve still gone ahead and advertised which just shows how desperate they are.
For heaven’s sake don’t get suckered into all this.
Hello GirlsCantTrade (I’m surprised you’ve not been ‘lynched’ with THAT login name yet) LOL!!!
Far be it from me to accept nor reject your statements as I don’t know enough about Tom Williams or whatever it is that he or his ‘gang’ may or may not be trying to sell (and I’ve also not finished reading this book either).
I must say this though: the relation of VOLUME to PRICE MOVEMENT and visa versa cannot simply be discounted (for stocks anyway). I believe that CONCEPTUALLY (from what I’ve read thus far): Tom Williams does a stellar job of explaining this relation (I’ve not got to any part YET that’s trying to sell me something but I’m sure it will come)!!!
Personally I believe that ANY (good) information that’s out there that will increase your UNDERSTANDING and KNOWLEDGE of how this all works is well worth it. Buying software and ‘black box’ systems and the like??? Well no.
Regards,
Dale.
Hi Dale
I’ve read Trading Chaos as well and am familiar with the MFI. I agree with you that MFI was out of place in that book.
But the MFI is just an indicator (mathematical abuse of past trading data) with four possible outcomes. The MFI could for instance not tell apart an up thrust from an ordinary bar that fills the same criteria according to MFI code, but that clearly isn’t an up thrust when the human eye and brain looks at it.
This is the weakness of all attempts to automate human interpretation, maybe someday when computers are smarter, but not in the foreseeable future.
This is something that has become painfully clear to me - indicators cannot think, and trading successfully requires clever thinking and the kind of fuzzy decision logic that computer code is unable to do.
That’s why I have rid myself of ALL indicators and look just at price, candlestick reversal formations and S/R levels where these occur. Then it’s up to my brain.
Try to clear out the indicator thinking for a while Dale and give the price action way a chance. It’s a completely different way of trading, there’s no oscillator or something telling you what to do, you have to figure that out yourself, and that’s hard at first but after a while you’ll start thinking: “how could I ever let an indicator tell me what to do! I must have been stark mad. Look at RSI telling us to buy, when my own brain is clearly telling me that sell or stand aside are the only sensible options!”
First of all, you should be slapped for the disrespect in your user name.
Second, the book “The Undeclared Secrets That Drive The Stock Market” was written long before Tradeguider came into the picture.
Your way of accusing Tom Williams is really kind of pathetic.
“Master The Markets” is the same book but with Tradeguider promotion.
The VSA people at FF all since the start seemed to have a love for cluttering their charts with indicators and messing things up, in spite of that there are several users there who trade successfully and have done so for years.
VSA is certainly not unproven and you claiming that shows that you have no clue.
I haven’t seen the mentoring services you claim they push, could you link please?
Like I’ve said before, Tom Williams book is a great read, but not necessarily for the VSA trading method. VSA is good to have as part of your toolbox, but just simple S/R and reversal formations is enough to trade well on higher time frames.
Sorry: I know I shouldn’t ‘clutter’ your thread but these two lines had me in absolute ‘stitches’:
mathematical abuse of past trading data
and
First of all, you should be slapped for the disrespect in your user name
ROFLOL!!!
The FIRST one is (probably) what ALL my trading systems are based on!!! LOL!!!
Regards,
Dale.
sorry but the truth hurts buddy
I haven’t seen the mentoring services you claim they push, could you link please?
Hey sure you can its in the recycle bin which says a lot
forexfactory.com/t/154339/p_2937235/learn-trade-vsa-volume-spread-analysis-91.html#post2937235
Good luck with VSA believe me you’ll need it unless of course you start selling ur VSA mentoring services which would be the smart thing to do but I doubt you can see that
Happy trading in fantasy land or VSA land as you call it.
This just shows what an infantile person you are. More than likely that reflects on your trading ability, which you of course will deny, but who cares.
Oh, and by the way, luck has nothing to do with trading as far as I’m concerned. None the less I wish you good luck too, [I]you[/I] might need it.
Feel free to think up the catchiest answer you can, I won’t waste more energy on you.
Looks like the old guard got another new person banned.
wow what did i miss??? two new people banned does anybody know why?