Diary of a position trader

[QUOTE
hnk, The re-entry criteria I have been using is when my last entry to a trade (I will enter multiple times) is more than 2x ATR (40) in profit I will re-enter the trade at 1% risk. Because most of my stops at this point are Conqueror stops this is quite obvious on the screen. I only started using this in May, so I don’t have a huge amount of data on its success yet.

At the time I started using the re-entries I was just listing them as Conqueror trades on my spreadsheet, I am now extracting them from there to be recorded separately and once I have done that my figures will be more reflective of the true nature of the individual systems I am using and will publish the data again. Don’t hold your breath for this though![/QUOTE]

Thanks bro. By going through your posts, it seems that re-entries played a big role in your profitability. Am I right in this assumption? Later when you get a chance can you shed some light on your money management.

Hey Cyco,

Wow what a system, this is a great thread and the first thread I have read on babypips. I’m currently learning and would really appreciate your input.

How long have you been studying the markets for?
Do you factor in fundamentals at all?
I have read your tax thread, what is your setup here in aus?
Thanks for all the research, looking forward to the rest of this thread.

Cmac:

I started using a demo system about 10 months ago, and went live in September '11. I ten started this thread and system usage in Nov '11, so about 7 months ago.

I do look at fundamentals, but don’t place a huge weight on them. For example on Friday of last week a Conqueror trade turned up on AUD/CAD and GBP/NZD. With the Greek elections being re-run over the weekend I did not enter them until Monday’s close. In general a trend following system is following changes in fundamentals so not too much time dwelling on them is required for me.

For this year’s tax I will be reporting it as a secondary income, and if in a few years it grows enough to be worth it I will look at relocation to domicile that allows wealth creation to take priority over tax payment.

Recently I have opened:

EUR/NZD: Short
AUD/NZD: Short

I’ve closed:

GBP/NZD for -73.5
AUD/CAD for -46
AUD/USD for +45.9
GBP/AUD for +35.9

So far my limited testing of my trend reversal method is working, and I can see a few more tests for it coming up.

I exited GBP/NZD trad on it yesterday for 1028.7 pips. Other methods on the same pair gave me 588.1, 260, 90.9 and -150.9 for a total of 1816.8 pips in 41 days on the 1 pair

Hi Cyco,

what is this trend reversal method? (i’m guessing its different from the conqueror / turtle method you are currently using?)

Thanks

It is one I am testing at the moment.

It takes the Bishop exit signal, and instead of just exiting open positions I am adding extra units to the close, and am attempting to follow the move in the opposite direction. I am placing the stop at the peak of the move, and bring it down in Trend Analysis fashion.

Results so far:
GBP/AUD 328pips
GBP/NZD 1028.7 pips
EUR/AUD 147.3 pips

Have just opened:
GBB/NZD Long 1.95484
NZD/CAD Short 0.81931

hi cyco,

I Still have trouble to enter a trade with the channel breakout. correct me if i’m wrong. I looked at any currency pair on the daily and put an order limit for to buy stop for the highest price for the last 55days and the sell stop for the lowest price for the last 55days but haven’t being filled up yet. you can wait for days and weeks till you going to be filled up. i must do something wrong. please guide me.

Thanks

robert

thanks for the reply Cyco

i have noticed that when Bishop signal is triggered it usually follows on for quite a few pips

Robert, The Stop orders can be out there for months on the 55 day channel waiting to be tripped; because they tend to make my working positions list very full I tend not to place them unless the currency is close, or moving in the direction of the channel.

Jangz, that was my reading of the charts too, that is why I’m trying to trade it as a reverse entry as well as the exit it is

ok, so how come you enter positions nearly everyday? so when do i know when to enter if i use the 55 days rule?

Robert211 - Cyco looks at a lot of pairs (even the exotic ones)

so do you still count 55days back and then enter. his book is not east to read. how do you enter then?

hi cyco,

with the 55/20 system, you do place your stop at 2 times ATR right? how do you adjust it? every 2 times ATR move you set the first position to break even and add another one with 2 times ATR stop?

robert; open your trading platform - you will find it far, far easier when you do.

Top; My initial stop (for the 55/20 system) is placed at the top of the wick of a candle that breaks the 55 line short (or bottom of one that goes long), it is then moved when the 20 line moves past this point and carries the stop with it.

If I have multiple entries on a pair I will used the stop that places the trade closest to the market. Example I entered EUR/AUD short on 8/6/12 @ 1.26388 with a 2xATR stop, the market then broke the 55 day channel on 12/6/12 @1.25708, and stop was moved to top of that candle @ 1.26465.
The stop then stayed there till the 20th when 2xATR brought it past that. Next stop move was with a Trend Analysis entry that was triggered on the 26th @ 1.23948 and the stop @ 1.25265 (high on the 22nd). Since then it has moved at 2xATR as that has come past the 1.25265 point, and has followed the marked down running 2xATR behind it.

In this case the 20 day channel stop is behind the 2xATR, and the Significant High stop, so I’m using 2xATR, if we get a new, closer stop created then it will be moved into that, rather than remaining at 2xATR.

Hi Cyco,

first of all - i read through since i last came here, and congrats on the discipline you’ve shown despite the drawdown during April and May

7000 pips is good; i’ve only been able to attain ~3000 pips from when i started in March.

keep up this diary - it is what inspired me in the first place and thanks for answering the questions

jangez; 7000 pips since March is great.

I’m now just over 11,000 banked since I started this at the end of November.

If for each trade I’d taken I had traded 1 standard lot (100,000) and no compounding my profit would be over $115,000!

Cyco,
For a micro account, $1150 or Mini $15,500 is big! Congratulations

Hi Cyco,

I’m 3000 from march…

So out of that 11,000 you have got since end of november is it possible to do a breakdown of how many pips each system has attained?

also how many trades Win/Loss for each system?

keen to know since you last posted the stats several months ago if conqueror is the best running system

Cheers
J

jangez; The Conqueror numbers include my early ATR Re-entry trades, as I’ve been too lazy/busy to sort it out. I do need to though to keep these numbers clean for my own records as well as sharing. Inside Days ‘suffers’ from a lack of trading in that I can’t have 2 positions open in opposite directions at the same time if I have a trade already open I don’t take the Inside Day trade.

Sorry about format, but I need a lesson in how to make a table here - the underscores are there to get it lined up

Number of trades _ Average pips/trade _ % winners _ Total pips
Conqueror ______ 86 ____________ 33.72
_ 40.7 ____ 2,899.5
Channel ________ 52 ____________ 79.89 __________ 42.31 ___ 4,154.3
Trend Analysis ___ 24 ___________ 165.16 __________ 62.5 ____ 3,963.8
Inside Days ______ 7 _____________ -4.26 _________ 42.86 _____ -29.8
ATR Re-entries ___ 8 ____________ 141.65 __________ 50 _____ 1,133.2
Trend Reversal ___ 4 _____________ 338.8 __________ 75 _____ 1,355.2

Totals:
Smith System ___ 169 ____________ 65.02 _________ 44.38 ____ 10,987.8
Current systems _ 181 ____________ 74.45 _________ 45.3 _____ 13,476.2

So the ‘most profitable’ system on a per trade basis is the Trend Reversal, but it has such a low number of trades it is not statistically valid to draw too many conclusions for that.

Hope these numbers help.

With these sort of results it is amazing that more people wont trade long term using systems like these