Differences in trading time frames

I don’t understand what to look for in short t.f trading verses longer time frame.The price is the same, but is stop loss and t.p at different levels? Can you give a hypothetical example of s.l and t.p for both scenario please.

Which t.f. will take longer to play out and which is more reliable, shorter or longer??

I read replies from many smart traders and I hope someone can clarify this for me.

Also on my demo platform most of the indicators are not really helpful as they only follow the price. Which ones are good to use and stay away from?

Thanks a lot.

Wow! You’re asking a lot.

Time frames… the debate is on!!

Some say anything under an hour is noise.

Some scalp trade off the 1 minute chart.

Personally, I scalp off the 5 minute and use the 60 minute chart as my “compass”.

Indicators? LOL!

I literally have coded and posted HUNDREDS of indicators. But I prefer a HORIZONTAL LINE such at Open Price, Previous day’s High, Low and Midpoint or simply lines with the price ending in 00, 25, 50 and 75. Trade in the direction of the cross when it agrees with the color of the 60 minute candle. In other words, go short on red candles and long on green when price touches the line. That simple.

With shorter timeframes you can have tighter stops, but you’ll be going for just a few pips … like on a 5 min tf, you can go for 8-10 pips with a 4 pip stop … but if trading on an hourly tf you could set a 20 pip stop and hope for 50-60 pips… just some wild examples, actual stops & targets depend on many things.
It may seem overwhelming at first but keep trading with your demo platform & keep reading in here & soon it will start to make sense.

Your best way to trade will probably be uniquely yours and different from others … you may pick up ideas along the way, but in the end it has to suit you, your account size, your risk tolerance, your time availablility & your personality … good luck :wink:

The difference in stop and profit levels are simple ones of scaling. Over shorter timeframes there are generally going to be smaller moves in price because the market simply doesn’t have as much time to move.

Which t.f. will take longer to play out and which is more reliable, shorter or longer??

You didn’t really give much thought to this question, did you? Of course it’s the longer timeframes that take longer to play out.

As for which is more reliable, none. They are all equally reliable or unreliable. Timeframe selection is 100% about you and the way you want to take on the markets. The best timeframe is the one that most suits you, your available time, and your desire to be more or less constantly active in the markets.

Also on my demo platform most of the indicators are not really helpful as they only follow the price. Which ones are good to use and stay away from?

Since indicators are based on price and have lag they are going to generally follow it in one fashion or another. Not going to avoid that. And there are no specific good or bad ones in general terms. There are only those that work for you and the way you trade and those that don’t - assuming you use them at all.

Thanks so much guys for taking your time and wanting to help. I see myself learning a bit more each day from this wonderful forum.
I will post more q. later.

Even though I read Baby pips school several times, there are things that still need to be fine tunned for total newbies.

Cheers

LearningFX:

“BEWARE THE MAN WHO HAS ONLY ONE GUN… HE PRACTICES WITH IT”

You don’t need a bunch of indicators on your chart.

Just learn ONE way and master it.

See my ALL YOU NEED TO TRADE IS A HORIZONTAL LINE thread.

Here is my experience, I do short term trading, 5-10 pips /day

When trading in Asian Market: there’s less/slower movement, 15min is better.
When trading in Lodon/New York Market: faster movement, 5 min is better.

The rule of thumb is, when the market is volatile use shorter time frame.

Matt