Time-Frame diversification

[trendie]

Most of T2W traders seem to be day-traders.
Nothing wrong in that.
Except that you have to drag your sorry ass over to the computer each and every day.

How long before you decided to use a larger TF and trade over multi-days, and take some of the daily pressure off yourself?

Day-trading is fine. But surely having a longer-term view as well helps to ride out equity blips, and helps to take pressure off if you dont have the day to trade.

What proportion of your account is for day-trading, and what proportion for larget TFs?

At what point did you use longer TFs as part of your overall strategy?
How many still have day-trading as their only strategy?

 

[barjon]

i dare say this will be of precious little use in answering, but:

my main account is 100% daily TF
my play account is 100% day-trading
my play account is about 10% of my main account

 

[bbmac]

Ditto Barjon's answer re his 1st part (I don't have a play a/c.) A lot of mis-information in the Thread Starter's post - above, ie some of the statements/assumptions are wrong/misleading/not always true. Horses for courses.

G/L

 

[NVP]

Most of T2W traders seem to be day-traders.
Nothing wrong in that.
Except that you have to drag your sorry ass over to the computer each and every day.

How long before you decided to use a larger TF and trade over multi-days, and take some of the daily pressure off yourself?

Day-trading is fine. But surely having a longer-term view as well helps to ride out equity blips, and helps to take pressure off if you dont have the day to trade.

What proportion of your account is for day-trading, and what proportion for larget TFs?

At what point did you use longer TFs as part of your overall strategy?
How many still have day-trading as their only strategy?

when 1 trade a week can pay my bills........?

 

[the hare]

I don't like longer duration trades mainly because my method requires a statistically valid sample size for the purpose of monitoring.

However, I do diversify based on time-frame in as much I run the same system based on analysis based on 5,15,30 min time-frames. I tend to find periods where maybe the 5 min variant works significantly better than the 15 and 30 min variants, and then everything swaps, and maybe the 30 min variant does well for 6 months or so. Personally I don't think its possible to trade "simple" TA based systems without diversification

 

[forker]

I don't like longer duration trades mainly because my method requires a statistically valid sample size for the purpose of monitoring.

However, I do diversify based on time-frame in as much I run the same system based on analysis based on 5,15,30 min time-frames. I tend to find periods where maybe the 5 min variant works significantly better than the 15 and 30 min variants, and then everything swaps, and maybe the 30 min variant does well for 6 months or so. Personally I don't think its possible to trade "simple" TA based systems without diversification

I disagree, my basket of methods are probably the simplest of anyone on this forum. To be more specific, my charts don't have anything overlayed. I do just fine using what would be considered TA, however simple it may be, without diversification

 

[the hare]

I disagree, my basket of methods are probably the simplest of anyone on this forum....

Presumably you selecting a single method from the "basket" based on experience

 

[wackypete2]

My strategies involve ONLY day trading, whether it's ES, forex, or US equities. Occasionally and ONLY in forex will I keep a trade open overnight if I opened it during the Asian session...rarely though. Even though I am at the computer everyday my trades are executed in a calm rational manner. I find that my temperament is best suited for short quick trades so that I am not at market risk for long periods of time. Honestly, I cannot sleep with open trades. That comes from years of getting battered in long term stock trades. I am stress-free (well, almost!) and comfortable with my trading style.

Peter

 

[NVP]

lets face it every TF has both its attractions and also challenges........

I think lower TF's get a lot of bad press from people who just dont understand the markets well enough to realise that "higher timeframes are more reliable" is such a cliche

N

 

[forker]

I really can't speak of any market other than spot fx, I do follow them but don't trade them. I realise those "pure" markets provide opportunities on all time frames. Spot fx however is unique in that it serves various functions. I don't need to go into details as I expect everyone knows what I am referring to. Small time frames surface activity which doesn't conform to archetypal speculation which increases risk. The bigger timeframe clearly define where money is moving and thus is far easier to trade.
You say it's a cliché, I say it's sensible business.

 

[BeginnerJoe]

I really can't speak of any market other than spot fx, I do follow them but don't trade them. I realise those "pure" markets provide opportunities on all time frames. Spot fx however is unique in that it serves various functions. I don't need to go into details as I expect everyone knows what I am referring to. Small time frames surface activity which doesn't conform to archetypal speculation which increases risk. The bigger timeframe clearly define where money is moving and thus is far easier to trade.
You say it's a cliché, I say it's sensible business.

Fx is easy to trade but you don't trade, how come ?

 

[forker]

Fx is easy to trade but you don't trade, how come ?

I do trade, but can't be ar5ed with other markets when one is enough.

 

[VielGeld]

Any and all time frames are valid for trading. It's really just preference. I'm a day trader myself for various reasons.

But I do use the 30s, 5m, and 1h for trades (and the daily for the big picture). They all provide their own market perspective.

Hell, I just gave the 5s a shot this morning and it's eminently tradeable, provided the spread is almost nil.

 

[ChocolateDigestive]

Most of T2W traders seem to be day-traders.
Nothing wrong in that.
Except that you have to drag your sorry ass over to the computer each and every day.

How long before you decided to use a larger TF and trade over multi-days, and take some of the daily pressure off yourself?

Day-trading is fine. But surely having a longer-term view as well helps to ride out equity blips, and helps to take pressure off if you dont have the day to trade.

What proportion of your account is for day-trading, and what proportion for larget TFs?

At what point did you use longer TFs as part of your overall strategy?
How many still have day-trading as their only strategy?

I can see how you could come to the conclusion that switching to longer t/f's takes the pressure off however it depends on how confident you are in your edge and your perception of pressure. For example would you feel more pressure trading a daily t/f 60% 1:1 RR edge over a 200 sample size as opposed to a 1 min t/f 75% 1:1 RR edge over a 5000 sample size. It all boils down to our own perception of pressure. do you get me.

You also have to take into account the traders pyschology. I have found that I am someone who wants to be involved in the market and trade 4 hour sessions, I tried trading the daily t/f's for a while and it drove me insane, but that's me and of course these things change over time. generally as we get older we acquire more patience.

as for trading a longer t/f riding out equity blips i am afraid that is nonsense. eg. if you take 1 trade per day on a long t/f with a 60% 1:1 edge you could quite easily have 3 losers in a row, now compare that to trading 10 times per day on a lower t/f, after 30 trades with a 60% 1:1 edge there is less chance you will be down, capiche.

 

[deadbroke]

My strategies involve ONLY day trading, whether it's ES, forex, or US equities. Occasionally and ONLY in forex will I keep a trade open overnight if I opened it during the Asian session...rarely though. Even though I am at the computer everyday my trades are executed in a calm rational manner. I find that my temperament is best suited for short quick trades so that I am not at market risk for long periods of time. Honestly, I cannot sleep with open trades. That comes from years of getting battered in long term stock trades. I am stress-free (well, almost!) and comfortable with my trading style.

Peter

How much did you make last year, nett?

How much did you nett for the last 5 years?

Can you provide documentation at a meetup in Central London or Cental anywhere?

A person of your calibre with nigh on 10k posts is in the Phd. bulletin board class.

Show us the goods, please.

 

[ChocolateDigestive]

How much did you make last year, nett?

How much did you nett for the last 5 years?

Can you provide documentation at a meetup in Central London or Cental anywhere?

A person of your calibre with nigh on 10k posts is in the Phd. bulletin board class.

Show us the goods, please.

You don't want much then! Lol

 

[tomorton]

It seems traders so far responding don't thnk much of diversification - we're either 90-100% intra-day traders or 90-100% extra-day traders (I can declare myself a 100% swing trader).

Doesn't this suggest that we don't really have faith in the frequently heard saying that TA works in all t/f's?

 

[ChocolateDigestive]

It seems traders so far responding don't thnk much of diversification - we're either 90-100% intra-day traders or 90-100% extra-day traders (I can declare myself a 100% swing trader).

Doesn't this suggest that we don't really have faith in the frequently heard saying that TA works in all t/f's?

I give up. How are you diversifying if you use multiple t/f's? Define 'works', seriously think about it.

 

[Splitlink]

Lots of the older generation started with share buying, as opposed to buying on margin, because there was nothing else around at that time, for most of us. Computer s and internet had not been invented. Does anyone remember David Fuller's "Chart Analysis" P&F chartbooks? That was the only TA that I was familiar with. I would never use TA without having decided whether the share was worth buying by using FA first. That is why I consider owning shares (FA and someTA) and trading short term (TA and no FA) as two different methods.

I might add that owning shares can give one some nasty shocks, too. It is not all wine and roses.

Long or short TF's? I hate holding leveraged shares overnight. That's the main difference for me. The other one is that I enjoy trading and being able to clear my table every day.

 

[tomorton]

I give up. How are you diversifying if you use multiple t/f's? Define 'works', seriously think about it.

I'm quoting from the opening message, I don't say diversification, in the sense of risk diversification to protect a portfolio, is achieved by trading different time frames.

However, it is interesting that many people do say this, yet don't actually do it. Traders and teachers often say the same markets can be traded with the same TA in different time frames, yet it seems none of us believe that's true. What do you think's going on?