10-31-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Expand your horizon, look for the big overall trend.

Post Trading Notes:

1.  Ice burgs are really interesting.  (They are a signal from Jigsaw you can have signaled on your charts)  If you get one on the bid side when you are looking to take a 2nd entry long then it seems like that is another really strong indicator you should take the trade.  It doesn't look like they are too strong by themselves outside of a S/R or a trend line.
2.  The pHOD,pLOD, pOPEN and pCLOSE worked out beautifully today.  So thank you Richard and Welly for that advice to put them on my charts.  I didn't have the same problem yesterday of wondering where the support and resistance areas were.
3.  I still think I struggled down at the pLOD b/c I was taking too many longs.  I think I needed to look for some shorts off of the EMA until the fake breakout occurred.
4.  Tons of trades today but the pre drawn lines I mentioned in #2 made it so much easier.  I still struggle with what to do when a trend gets to a support or resistance area.
5.  Mack's lines for S/R are pretty much the exact same with the pre drawn lines recommend by Richard and Welly....wow!  That makes it so much easier!

Mack's Notes:

1.  When you are trying to sell resistance you are counting off of the highs.  When you are trying to buy support you are buying off of the lows.
2.  If you are reading PA correctly then you will rarely be on the wrong side of a trade.
3.  You are looking for long traps in a downtrend to go short.
4.  You are looking for short traps in an uptrend to go long.
5.  Do not counter-trend trade.

Trades:

1.  8:30 - 2nd entry long off of EMA and measured move of the trend line moved over.
2.  8:45 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the pClose.  A counter trend trade which is usually never a good idea.
3.  8:47 - Double top with an iceberg order against the upper trend line.
4.  8:52 - Two iceberg signals hit at the lower trend line.  Guess I should wait for those 2nd entries.
5.  8:56 - Failed 2nd entry long
6.  9:10 - Trap bar at the pLod.
7.  9:13 - 2nd entry long off of the pLod
8.  9:32 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line.
9.  9:41 - 2nd entry long off of the fake breakout of the pLod and maybe the bottom of a trend line.  Got out at what might be the top of the trend line, not sure at the moment.  (Nope, was a made up trendline I made.  I deleted it)
10.  11:07 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA and lower trend line
11.  11:49 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the pClose.  Also had an ice burg on the offer.  Got out at the EMA when an ice burg signaled at the bid.
12.  12:40 - 2nd entry short off of the pClose.  Guess I shouldn't have taken it b/c it was still in a trend and above the EMA.
13.  2:06 - Failed 2nd entry long

10-30-2013

Pre-Trade Notes:

1.  Keep drawing all of the small trend channels and S/R levels.
2.  The market usually moves in 2's.
3.  If price has been above the EMA for over an hour then it is in an uptrend.  DO NOT TAKE SHORT TRADES!
4.  Wait for price to come back to your trend lines and S/R areas.  Do not chase.  Be patient.  IF you are unsure then do not trade.  You  have to have a clear vision of why you are getting in a trade and know what it looks like, where you will exit and what you will do if the trade does not develop.

Post Trade Notes:

1.  I got frozen up bad for the first part of the day.  When I do not know where the S/R area is but I am in a trend I am unsure if to take a trade or wait b/c it is close to what could be a S/R area.  Price was in a down trend in a good channel but I thought it might have been less than a scalp from a support area so I didn't take the trade.  Which overrides which??????????

Is the channel greater than the potential S/R area or is the potential S/R area greater than the channel?  After the fact it is easy to tell but in the moment I struggle greatly.

2.  For all missed trades I am going to explain them on my charts.  The violet colored circles are ones that I saw.  The yellow circles are ones I missed and got from Mack's review.

3.  I think I am making up support/resistance areas.  It is messing me up.
4.  The good news is I was patient and didn't take trades where I was unsure which was very frustrating and I felt that frustration building up.

Mack's Notes:

1.  We are not just pattern traders.  We have to take every thing in context and make our decision off of that.
2.  You can get a 3 legged move.  Generally the 2nd leg will be the longest and the 1st and 3rd leg will be around the same length.
3.  Even during news price action is still valid.
4.  Draw your short term trend lines b/c they are valid and they help you stay on the right side.

Trades:

1.    12:05 - 2nd entry short off of upper trend line.  Got out with 2nd contract at a volume cluster area.  Should have stayed in until the lower trend line.

10-29-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  The market is symmetrical.  When you find a good trend channel then draw it over in a measured move b/c price seems to bounce off of those areas as well.  This also seems to work in a range as well.
2.  Keep drawing the range bars even in just small support/resistance areas.
3.  Wait for price to come back to your support and resistance areas as well as your trend channels.  Do not chase or get in early with a false signal.
4.  If price has been above the EMA for over an hour then it is in an uptrend.  Opposite side for a downtrend so DO NOT COUNTER TRADE!!!!!

Post Trading Notes:

1.  For some reason today I could not see the trades when doing my review.  The violet circles are trades I saw after the fact but I had trouble spotting them at the correct time.
2.  Maybe I am struggling drawing my S/R lines b/c those kept me out of the big runner around 11:07 b/c I thought price was too close to the resistance area.  Obviously it was not.
3.  I didn't see the big channel until after the good runner trade happened.
4.  Better job in spotting the overall trend channel.  Getting quicker but still lagging.
5.  The trade at the end of the day I shouldn't have taken b/c it was too late in the day but the setup was beautiful.

Mack's lines are in black.

Mack's Notes:

1.  A failed 2nd entry short is when price breaks above a bar before it reaches the scalpers profit.
2.  You don't want to get long too close to the previous high after the first break of a trend line.

Trades:

1.  9:25 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA.
2.  2:38 - Thought it was a 2nd entry long off of the main lower support channel line.  Turns out it was a 3rd entry which isn't a trade setup.  The entry bar created a nice trap almost off of the lower trend line and I rode it to the top of the trend line.

Missed Trades:

1.  7:39 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short off of the lower trend line.
2.  9:58 - Trap that reversed off of the support line.  It looked like it was a failed 2nd entry and I also had my support area lower from the previous swing low.  I saw this trade after the fact but missed it when doing my review (obviously).
3.  11:07 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  There was also a short trap at the swing low.
4.  12:47 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA and lower minor trend line.

10-28-2013

Pre-Trade Notes:

1.  If you find a good trend line then just use the measured move to extend it up or down.  It seems to work a high majority of the time!
2.  Keep drawing all of the support/resistance areas.
3.  Added the Previous Days High and Previous Day Low to my charts.

Post Trading Notes:

1.  If price goes through one of the measured lines w/o even acknowledging it then should I not worry about it when price comes close to it again?  It seems that is the case.
2.  Finally found the big green line channel at the very end of the day.
3.  It seems the measured line trend lines seem to work pretty well.  Got a lot of good bounces at 2nd entries off of them.  Going to keep using these.
4.  Today was a range day but you can see how price still bounced off of the measure move trend channels.
5.  The 2nd trade I could have ridden all the way to the high of the day.  Live and learn.
6.  He has a "Premium Room" on his website now.  I'm not sure what to think about this. It is a cheap price but still an interesting turn this has taken.  Who am I kidding, if people would pay to read what I write then I would do the same thing.
7.  All of my trades were trades he took.  Very encouraging.
8.  You need to have room to at least get a scalp when you get a 2nd entry signal.

Mack's Notes:

1.  Range day today.  Not a lot of trades today.
2.  If price tries to do something 2X but fails each time then it is usually going to go in the opposite direction.
3.  You can tell how good a trap was by how fast price moves.

Trades:

1.  8:43 - Failed 2nd entry short off of resistance and a 2nd entry long.  I used the Jigsaw to get in early but I am unsure if I did it correctly.  I saw that the large orders (orders over 100 lot) were stacked in favor of the bulls around this level.  The buy orders outnumbered the sell orders on almost every level from where I entered to 6 ticks higher.  Since this was setting up to be a 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short I entered early based on Jigsaw.  Still not sure if that is sound reasoning in my interpretation of tape reading.  I got out when the sell orders triumphed the buy orders at a couple of levels and I also had a two legged measured move.

2.  10:03 - 2nd entry long off of support area and the measured trend line down I did 2X.  It fit very nicely with the support area.  When the failed 2nd entry short signaled then price took off after touching the lower trend channel and the support area.  Also a bunch of trades of over 100 came in around the 1753 area.  Got out when two blocks totaling over 900 contracts entered.  Not sure if that is a correct exit b/c I wanted it 3-4 ticks higher at the next trend line.  (Obviously that wasn't a good move b/c price went up 6+ more points...lol)

3.  1:42 - 2nd entry long.  Should have waited for price to retrace to the EMA and then taken the trade.  Still was able to scalp out.

Missed Trades:

1.  9:02 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short off of the lower trend line.  I saw this trade but hesitated and did not take it.  I should have taken it b/c it was a great setup but for some reason I didn't trust the trend line even though it had proven to be good.
2.  9:23 - 2nd entry short counting from the previous swing low, an overshoot of the trend line and testing a previous resistance area.  It was also far away from the EMA.
3.  2:40 - 2nd entry short off the EMA
4.  2:50 - 2nd entry long off of the main trend line and a 2 legged move down.  This trade was too late to take in the day and I didn't see the main trend line here until the swing low formed.

10-7-2013 Review Session

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Draw all trend lines and support/resistance areas.
2.  Look for fake breakouts of support/resistance areas.

Post Trading Notes:

1.  Good job on the trend line drawing.  Felt I did well in identifying the correct trend lines and ranges.
2.  Bad job in getting caught up in congestion while in a range.
3.  Once you have a good trend line and price breaks out of it then draw the measured trend line over b/c more often than not it fits.  That is exactly what happened on the upside and downside today.

Mack's Notes:

1.  Don't trade every day.  Take some time off every now and then.
2.  As you trade longer the thrill begins to fade and it becomes boring.  It is good b/c you will be getting better with your emotions but also it means you will need to take a brake and recharge your batteries.
3.  When you get your trend lines correct then they will fit very well on both sides.  When you learn to get them to fit properly then your success will increase.
4.  You confirm your trend lines by getting multiple touches on them.
5.  There is always a channel and if you look hard enough you will find it.

Trades:

1.  8:34 - 2nd entry long off of support area.
2.  10:16 - 2nd entry short off of upper trend line.
3.  10:43 - 2nd entry long at upper trend line and resistance area
4.  10:55 - Double top at resistance and fake breakout of trend line.
5.  11:39 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line and the end of a 2 legged measured move down.
6.  12:39 - Missed the orginal 2nd entry long at 12:11 b/c the entry was too far away for my stop loss but price came back and filled my entry.  Should have gotten out where the resistance and middle trend line of the pitch fork intersected but got greedy.  Gave up about 1.5 points but still a good trade.
7.  1:21 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.
8.  1:58 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  Should not have taken it b/c was in a ton of congestion.

Missed Trades:

1.  8:41 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line and a failed 2nd entry.  I missed getting in b/c the original entry was too much for my stop loss.  I was tardy in dropping my limit order in and it took off on me.
2.  9:05 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA and the resistance turned support area.  Saw this trade but didn't take it b/c I just didn't trust my lines for some reason.  Lack of confidence and also thinking that price was going back to the lower trend line.  All bad reasons.
3.  9:20 - Failed 2nd entry short
4.  10:46 - Failed 2nd entry short.  This trapped me on the wrong side.
5.  12:11 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line.  I missed it b/c the entry was too far for my stop loss.
6.

10-25-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Continue to draw all trend lines but try to make sure they are not so narrow.
2.  Do not trade unless you are confident in the trend line and you know if you are in a trend or a range.

Post Trading Notes:

Got fooled once but I see in  his review he is going to talk about it so that is good.  Felt I did a good job of finding the trend and/or range lines.  Still have much to improve in that area but getting better.  Missed 3 trades that popped out after they formed.  The last one was because I was being lazy and watching football while I had the re-player running.

Keep practicing and you will keep on improving.
Mack's lines are in black.

Mack's Notes:

1.  Range day.  He didn't say anything that stuck out to me.

Trades:

1. 8:55 - 2nd entry short off of the lower trend line and the EMA signaled at 8:49 but it came back and got me in for a scalp.

2.  10:19 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line and/or support area.
3.  11:09 - 2nd entry long but didn't wait for the trend line.  Got greedy and tried to use the support area.  Trend line was good so should have used that.
4.  11:19 - Not a 2nd entry b/c that was my last trade but price created a doji at the lower trend line and I knew the trend line was good so I took it.  It was also a failed break of the range bottom.
5.  2:40 - Missed the intial 2nd entry long at 2:19 but price came back and got me in.  Had my 2nd lot on tick below the high of the day.

Missed Trades:

1.9:02- 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the end of a 2 legged measured move.  Mack didn't mark this trade but I like it for the reasons listed above.  It is against the trend though.
2.  9:49 - 2nd entry long off of support and price had broken out of the small trend line down.  This is a trade I just missed.
3.  10:35 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and Mack's range line.
4.  12:22 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and close to the resistance area.  Mack didn't have this setup.
5.  1:07 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA and a failed 2nd entry short if counting from the previous swing high.

10-24-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Continue to draw all of the trend lines but look for a swing to get a good feel for where it is.
2.  IF YOU ARE NOT CONFIDENT WITH YOUR LINES OR KNOWING IF PRICE IS IN A RANGE OR A TREND THEN DO NOT TRADE!!!!!  There will always be another trade.  Only trade when I know.

Post Trading Notes:

Still got confused until later in the day when I saw the easy channel.  The price will not always fit perfectly in my channels or ranges.  I have to remember this.  It will fit "pretty good" but it will not be perfect.
When price is going through the EMA each way then look for a range rather than a channel.  Price may end up forming a channel but when it is going through the EMA with no problem then price is in a range.

I didn't take any trades near the open b/c I was still gun-shy about yesterday and trying to make certain that I knew we were in a range or a trend.

Mack's Notes:

1.  You would like to see multiple touches on a line to confirm it.
2.  He thinks the double bottoms/tops is more powerful to have one tick go through the double bottom/top b/c it traps a bunch of people on the wrong side.
3.  If prices are mostly below the EMA then you are in a downtrend.
4.  If prices are mostly above the EMA then you are in an uptrend.
5.  If prices are swinging from side to side on the EMA then you are in a range.
6.  On range days you have to buy the lows and sell the highs.
7.  If you stay with the trend on a trend day you will improve your odds.
8.  The market moves in a geometric fashion.  He doesn't understand why it does this but it does.
9.  Always re-evaluate your lines.
10.  Follow your trend channels and stay with them.  Wait for price to come to your channel lines.

Trades:

1.  8:49 - Failed 2nd entry short at the lower trend line.  Probably was too close for a scalp but I at least got that.
2.  9:02 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line of the pitchfork.  Not sure if I like this trade.
3.  9:24 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line.  Not sure if I like this trade.  It was also the end of a 2 legged measured move so that helped in my decision.
4.  1:16 - 2nd entry long off fo the bottom trend channel and the EMA.  This was a very good trade.

Missed Trades:

1. 8:32 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the middle/upper trend line.
2.  8:39 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the EMA and middle/upper trend line.
3.  9:32 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry off of support.  Turned out to be the lower trend line but I did not know that at the time.
4.  11:49 - I don't know what this is but this is a buy off of the lower trend line.

10-23-2013

Today I got absolutely destroyed.  I threw away my charts because it would do no good to review them.  They were nothing but fail.  I could not find the major trend channel or the support/resistance area so I could not determine if price was in a trend or a channel.  As soon as I thought I would find it and take a trade then price would blow right through it for a loss.At the end around 1pm I started taking "revenge" trades.  That's a horrible thing to develop.  I knew I was done and wasn't even going to come back at a later date to re-do today b/c I will remember this day for a long time.

Right when I think I am getting the rules down this happens which is good b/c it goes to show I am so far from going live that it isn't even funny.  Oh well, a good kick in the teeth is needed from time to time to re-enforce how much further I have to go.  I seriously got destroyed.  I don't think I have had this bad of a day the whole time I have been doing these.

I'm going to watch Mack's video, take notes and then go to bed.  This was absolutely crushing at how bad I did.  Wow.  I could not find the trend or channel for the life of me.
(After watching Mack's videos I am drawing the small trend channels to narrow and not waiting for 2 swings to form for a lot of them.  I am also looking for perfect symmetry in my line drawings but most of the time it is "close" and not perfect)

Mack's Notes:

1.  Mack makes it look so easy.
2.  If you can't reach a target of a 2 legged measured move then price is going to reverse.
3.  Range rules - Buy lows and fade the highs.  You can do this in a big trend as well but they are an aggressive trade.
4.  It's better to have your 2 point stop a tick or two above/below the signal bar.  He likes to keep his 2 ticks above/below the signal bar.
5.  Whenever price is on both sides of the EMA then that is a good sign that we are in a range so you should buy every new low and fade every new high.

10-22-2013

Question:  How do you get the bars to load from the end of the previous day's session using the market re-player?  Every day I get a big gap from when the day closes to the beginning of the current day.   I have the time period set to "24/7 default."  It messes me up at the beginning of each day.

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Focus on drawing the correct trend lines by drawing all of the smaller trend lines within the move whether it is a range or trend.
2.  Remember the setups of when price breaks out of a trend and what to look for.  If in an uptrend it will either create a HH or a HL.  Know how to react to each of these.  Opposite is true for a downtrend.

Post Trading Notes:

Today confused the mess out of me until I finally saw the upward trend around 11:51.  I missed a good trade but I could not tell from 9:56 until 11:51 if we were in a range or a trend.  The huge moves at the beginning of the session through me for a loop as well.  I could not figure out if we were in a range or a trend so I was confused as to what set of rules to follow which is why I missed out on a trade.  I like that I did not take any trades when I was confused if we were in a range or a trend even though I wanted to b/c I did not want to "miss out."  I felt that emotion tugging at me very hard today.  Good job in not giving in.

Once I figure out if we are in a range or a trend then everything becomes clear on what to do.  That is my biggest goal right now.  Find out as soon as I can if we are in a trend or a range.  Drawing the minor trends within the range or trend helps out extremely well.

Mack's lines are in black.
The trades I missed but saw are in violet.
Mack's trades I missed are in yellow.

Mack's Notes:

1.  When you have a news spike then price will usually come back and take out the spike.  Then price will reset and start over.
2.  You need 3 or more overlapping bars with one of them being a doji for it to be congestion.
3.  Draw your short term trend channels

Trades:

1.  8:50 - 2nd entry long, failed 2nd entry short, 2 legged pullback, first break out of the trend channel (or at the bottom of the pitchfork channel I created).  Lots of reasons to like this trade.  Didn't have a target so kept my 2nd contract 2 ticks under the previous bar until I was stopped out.
2.  9:49 - Failed 2nd entry long.  Not sure if this was a good trade but I do not know how to get the end of day bars from the day before to show up on my chart so a big gap is created every day and I do not know how much it skews the EMA.  So price could have been far away like it is or close to it.  I am thinking this is a bad trade since price is too far from the EMA and there has been enough time to straighten the EMA out from the missed over night bars.

3.  11:30 - 2nd entry short.  Thought price had overshot the resistance line and is going back to the other side.  At least got a scalp.
4.  1:34 - 2nd entry long off of the lower support channel.

Missed Trades:

1.  9:01 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the lower trend channel.
2.  10:23 - Failed 2nd entry long
3.  10:36 - 2nd entry long off of the lower channel line
4.  10:51 - Failed 2nd entry short
5.  11:51 - 2nd entry long off of the lower support channel and a 2 legged move to the lower trend channel
6.  12:39 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA

10-21-2013

Pre-Trade Notes:

1.  Focus on re-drawing correct trend lines until you have them correct.  Major and minor trend lines.
2.  Focus on recognizing if we are in a trend or in a range.
3.  In a trend price will break out of the trend line to the downside and then go up and create a newer high before going into a range.  Or price will create a lower high and then create the 2nd leg lower before going into a range..  The first leg is the lower high. Opposite is true for when in a down trend.
 
Post Trade Notes:

Started re-reading Mack's book again and it really does help.  I will read it once per week b/c it has helped me to remember and make clearer some issues I was struggling with regarding the trend line breaking and when to know that price is probably going the other direction.

Pretty decent day.  Only took one bad trade that missed getting a scalp by one tick.  It is a good lesson to learn b/c I did not give myself enough cushion for the scalp.  I thought I had b/c I was looking at the previous low but when price creates a higher low which signals a reversal then you cannot count on the previous swing low.  Good lesson to learn.

I like how I drew all of the trend lines (major and minor) and waiting for the rules about the break of the trend lines and then either a higher high/low or a lower high or a higher low before the reversal.  Reading that part in Mack's book really did help today.

The yellow circles are the trades I did not see until Mack's video review.  The violet circles are the trades I saw after the fact but missed when trading (in simulation).

The lines in black are from Mack's video review that I did not draw when trading.

Mack's Notes:

Rangy day today.  He closed up shop early b/c there wasn't much movement.

Find your channels, find your range highs and lows, stick with your 2nd entries and bounces off of S/R.

Trades:

1.  8:36 - 2nd entry short off of resistance level
2.   10:14 - 2nd entry long at the support area.  Price had broken out of the small trend channel to the upside then went down and created a new low that help signal the down trend was over.  It was also at a support area.
3.  2:00 - 2nd entry short off of support turned resistance level.  Price had broken out of the small down trend channel for the 1st time so was looking for price to go down and test the lows again at least for a scalp.  Price created a higher low and then went straight up.  I originally had the S/R line where I entered but after the bad trade I moved it down.  Looks like another bad trade is the result of not having the proper lines drawn.
4.  2:34 - A failed 2nd entry long developed 5 bars over so I was waiting for price to come back and fill me then go back up to the resistance level.  It did come back and fill me for a scalp but that is all I got.
5.  2:59 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the lower trend channel and the EMA.  Still was looking for price to hit the resistance level.  Got at least a scalp out of it.

Missed Trades:

1.   8:43 - He has it as a buy at the lower trend line but it isn't a 2nd entry and he was also looking for the 2nd leg of the measured move up.  I didn't see that on my charts but I see the area after the fact.
2.  8:59 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short.  If I had noticed that this move is the 2nd leg of a 2 legged measured move then I would have taken this trade.  I thought it was the top of a range.
3.  9:15 - I have teh 2nd entry short at this point.  He has it at 9:30
4.  9:53 - Failed 2nd entry long.
5.  10:47 - Failed 2nd entry short at support area
6.  1:15 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the EMA.

10-7-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  FOCUS ON YOUR TREND LINES!!!!  THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART!  If you mess this up then you will definitely have a losing day.

Post Trading Notes:

Still having a really hard drawing the correct trend lines.  Cost me 3 losing trades today.  This is the only thing I am going to focus on until I have it mastered.

Dang it!  I used the wrong measured move and it screwed me up big time.  Instead of using the measured move from the trend line to give me the 3rd (lowest) trend line I used the measured move from the range.  Should have used the range one.  Have to remember to use the trend one first.  This would have saved me several losing trades b/c I was looking at price trying to go down to the measured move from the range and not on the trend line!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Still struggling but that is to be expected from the long layoff.  As mentioned in the above paragragh I totally screwed up that part by not using the correct measurements.
Mack's lines are in black.

Mack's Notes:

1.  The longer you do this the thrill of trading will begin to fade and become more boring.  This is good b/c it means you are getting your emotions under control and that you need to take a break to refresh yourself then come back.
2.  There is always a channel and if you look hard enough you will find it.

Trades:

1.  8:58 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  I should have waited for the 2 legged pullback and 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  I took both contracts out at a scalp b/c that was near the top of the trend line.
2.  10:01 - Thought it was a 2nd entry long off of the trend line and EMA.
3.  10:16 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend channel after price had made a 2 legged measured move down to the lower trend line.  I missed the original entry but got in 2 bars later.
4.  11:43 - Thought it was a failed 2nd entry long against the support turned resistance.  Was looking to hit the measured move down.  Obviously it was a short trap.
5.  12:00 - 2nd entry short off of the EMA.
6.  12:11 - 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  Obviously I need to go long here.  2 out of 3 shorts have not worked in this area.
7.  12:15 - Failed 2nd entry short
8.  1:11 - 2nd entry lnog off of the EMA.
9.  1:49 - 2nd entry long from the SL but I think I was looking for it too hard and forcing a trade.

Missed Trades:

1.  8:34 - 2nd entry long
2.  8:41 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short
3.  9:05 - 2nd entry short off of the lower trend line
4.  9:20 - Failed 2nd entry short
5.  10:46 - Failed 2nd entry short
6.  11:39 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line
7.  12:11 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line

10-18-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Focus on not counter trend trading.
2.  Keep redrawing trend lines until I get them correct.
3.  Draw the smaller trends within the trends and ranges.
4.  After price breaks out of a trend the opposite way it will go back to the previous high/low and might even create a new one before it goes into a range for at least an hour and then decides to either continue the trend or go the other way.

Post Trading Notes:

Today is a learning day....haha.  I highlighted the overall trend in bold b/c I didn't really see that was the correct trend until 1:30.  I thought we were in a range which totally messed me up.  B/c of that I made some horrendous trades.  Oh well, this is a very good reminder that I am still a long way off from going live.

At 9:35 when price broke out of the trend line then that messed me up and made me think we were in a trend.  I should have kept the trend line from the top and just moved it down b/c that was the correct one.  Price had just over shot it and then went up and made a new high.

Mack's Notes:

1.  An overshoot of a trend channel usually leads to a reversal.
2.  You have to learn how to trade with what the day is giving you.
3.  You have to trade long enough to be able to see everything the market can throw at you.
4.  This is a more normal type of trading day for the market.

Trades:

1.  8:34 - 2nd entry long off of what I thought was the lower trend line.
2.  9:35 - 2nd entry long off of support area and was first major break out of the trend channel.
3.  10:07 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  Am looking for price to at least go make a double top if not a new high.
4.  11:08 - 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  Obviously it was a short trap.
5.  11:49 - 2nd entry short.  Not sure what I was thinking here.  Horrible trade.  Guess I was thinking that price would hit that double top and turn down again.  Also thought that since it had broken it's small trend line and created a new high that it would turn down again since it was at a double top.
6.  1:51 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line after price had broken out of the smaller trend and made a new high.  Was looking for price to go down to the bottom trend line but it didn't make it there for my 2nd contract before I was stopped out.

Missed Trades:

1.  8:30 - 2nd entry short off of a failed break higher.
2.  8:35 - Failed 2nd entry long.  This is where I went long....haha.  Whoops.
3.  8:41 - Entry off of the lower trend line.  Not a 2nd entry on my chart, a 3rd entry.
4.  8:50 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  I saw this but didn't take it.
4.  9:23 - 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  I saw this one as well but did not take it.
5.  11:04 - 2nd entry long on a short time frame chart.  Price was holding on the lower trend line so it was a legit entry.

10-17-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Focus on not counter trend trading.
2.  Keep redrawing your trend lines until you get them correct.
3.  Draw the smaller trends within the bigger trends and within the ranges.
4.  After price breaks out of a trend the opposite way it will go back to the previous high/low and might even create a new one before it goes into a range for at least an hour and then decides to either continue the trend or go the other way.
5.  Focus on getting your initial trend lines from the first 2 swings from the overnight session.

Post Trading Notes:

Another day with it being a great trend day!  These are very nice to have.  Not much to say.  Keep on improving.  Read his ebook over the weekend.  Still some foggy confusion at times but the mroe you do these the clearer the setups will become.  Missed the move up at the end of the day even though I got in at the low, got BE stop cut out.  Thought about getting in again b/c I felt price was going to at least reach a double top since it was the 1st major break of the trend line.  It followed the rule b/c it went up wayyy past the double top after it broke the trend channel before continuing up.  I didn't want to look for any trades since it was past 2pm.  The trade I got out of was fine even though it ended up getting a scalp.  Good reasoning both ways.
Seemed to be a very strong trend today b/c of the smaller candles that continued to go up almost all the day.
Mack's lines that I should have drawn are in black.

Mack's Notes:

1.  Don't worry about using the previous day's levels.
2.  TOOLS --->OPTIONS----> DATA (Uncheck "Filter Bad Ticks")  Mack said this will make your charts look like his and I shouldn't have those problems anymore where 2nd entries signal on his charts but not mine which happens every single day.  Hopefully this will cure the problem!
3.  If you are about to take a trade ask yourself, "Which way would you trade if you could move the market?"
4.  The market is always trying to trick you and trap you.
5.  When dojis form at extremes (highs/lows) it generally signals a trend in the other direction.
6.  YOU HAVE TO GET YOUR CHANNEL'S CORRECT
7.  You are better off to miss a good trade than to enter at a bad spot.

Trades:

1.  8:31 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA looking for price to head back up to resistance area.  The 2nd entry long signaled one bar over but I was able to get back in before it hit the scalp on a retrace to the EMA.  (Mack did not like this trade, he said it was too risky)
2.  8:45 - 2nd entry short off of resistance area.  Once 4 overlapping bars and a doji formed I got out for a slight loss.  It looks  like people are building positions here getting ready to go higher.  Price should have hit resistance and gone back down if it was going to go back to the support area already.  (LOL....soon after price breaks through for a short)
3.  9:03 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  Still had room for a scalp before price would have hit a double top.  Probably should have locked in 2 points on 2nd contract.  Had the exit w/the 2 legged measured move.
4.  10:01 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA and lower trend line.  1715.75 is a very big cluster area.  Kept moving my 2nd contract up to the top of the range line and had the trailing stop below the swing lows.  This movement the past 2 days has been amazing.  3 months ago I felt like my 2nd contract was getting stopped out almost every time.  The past 2 days I have had some really nice runners.
5.  1:12 - 2nd entry long off of support and cluster area.

Missed Trades:

1.  8:01 - 2nd entry short
2.  8:26 - 2 legged move down to make a double bottom
3.  9:26 - 2nd entry long
4.  11:17 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  I got cute here and tried to drop an order in 3-4 ticks lower but obviously did not get filled.

10-16-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Focus on NOT COUNTER TREND TRADING!!!!!!!!!!  Quit trying to find the bottoms and tops.
2.  Look for 2 legged moves to the trend line and look to get in them at a cluster area even if it is not a 2nd entry.  It is a valid trade if it is a 2 legged move back to the trend line even if it is not a 2nd entry.

Post-Trading Notes:

I am not going to include the Jigsaw snapshots of the whole picture.  Just the area where I entered. It is taking up too much room on the reviews.
Add the SH, SL, HH, HL indicator.

Really good day of trading.  The Jigsaw saved me on a trade at 10:25.  I normally would have taken this trade but I saw it was a low cluster area so I didn't take it.  Not sure if it is still a good reason but it seems to be working so far.  Below is the snapshot:

Near the end of the day I felt like I was guessing to I didn't take any trades.  I would have had a scalp at 1:56 from reading the Jigsaw and the weakness of cluster areas but it wasn't a Mack trade so I didn't take it.

I have got to figure out why most of the overnight session is not downloading b/c it is screwing my charts up when trying to find the trend lines!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Mack's Notes:

1.  Read his study guide over and over and over again.  There is too much info in there to pick it all up in only a couple of read through.  Use it like a study guide, not like a book you read and set aside.  Go through it as many times as you can, you will get at least one little nugget each time.  Even when you start understanding his system keep on reading it.
2.  Your trend usually starts with the 1st 2 swings from the overnight session.
3.  The idea is to always find the channel or range.  Don't worry about how you get there, make sure it is holding prices in that channel.

Trades:

1.  8:43 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  Not sure if that was the bottom of the trend line.  Was having a hard time finding it.  There were 2 dojis before the entry so I probably should have held off on taking this trade.

2.  9:43 - 2nd entry long off of the bottom trend line.  Great signal bar this time off the lower trend line.  Last time price hit the line it rocketed off and it did the same this time.  Picture perfect Mack PAT trade right here.  The only problem I had was when to take my profits on the 2nd contract!

3.  11:06 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA and am looking for price to make a new high before going into a range since this is the first major break of the uptrend channel to the downside.  Had the 2nd entry at the end of the 2 legged measured move which also made it a double top from the previous high.

4.  1711.25 - 2nd entry long off of the support area.  I figured I had at least a scalp from the entry before I hit a major cluster area and fortunately I was correct.

Missed Trades:

1.  7:20 - Breakout from the support.
2.  8:33 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  It didn't show as a 2nd entry on my chart.
3.  9:15- Failed 2nd entry short.  My chart did not show this but his did.
4.  10:02 - Failed 2nd entry short
5.  12:22 - 2nd entry long off of support area.  I saw this but just missed getting in on it b/c I was being too greedy and had my entry almost a point lower.

10-15-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Continue to adjust your trend lines and S/R areas until you get them correct during the trading session.
2.  Look for failed 2nd entries as legitimate entries but to also confirm 2nd entries.
3.  Use Mack's rules first and then use the volume profiling on the Jigsaw tool to see about entry levels.
4.  Focus on 2 legged moves back to the trend line areas.  These are not 2nd entries but are valid trades.

Post-Trading Notes:

Today was pretty nuts.  Recognized it was a trading range but just seemed hard to get a good feel for the day.  Took some good trades and some bad trades.  Good learning day.  In one losing trade I got impatient and didn't wait for price to hit the support area, got greedy and was afraid in missing out (trade #7).  Trade 2 was bad b/c price had gone too far above the channel to be considered a good short to look for a retest of the lows.  Price had also demolished the EMA so I should have recognized it was going up higher.

After reviewing Mack's video I was looking to go long in a downtrend a bunch today.  I have a bad habit of trying to find bottoms and it was obvious by the trades I took today.  HAVE TO FOCUS TO BREAK THIS HABIT!!!!!!!  Make this a priority!!!!!!!!!!!

Mack's Notes:

You have to know the rules when you trade or you will be a losing trader.
You have to find your signal bar and have a good bar, no dojis.

Trades:

1.  8:30 - 2nd entry short.  This was interesting.  The 2nd entry short signaled but the entry bar went low enough for a scalp.  I got in at a price cluster area when price came back.  There was also the EMA and the upper trend channel.  Price went against me but eventually came back for a nice win.  I am not sure if this is a good trade since the scalp was already successful on the initial 2nd entry???????  It was a two legged measured move back to the upper trend line and EMA.  On second look this was a very good trade and I could have gotten in at an even better price if I had waited for price to go below the next bar at 1701.00.

2.  8:54 - 2nd entry short.  Not a good entry b/c it was not on a clear trend channel or resistance area.  Price had just shot through the EMA with strength going up.

3.  8:58 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  After my loss I looked at the Jigsaw and saw there wasn't any resistance up until 1703.00.  I could have gotten in a piont better if I had waited a 2nd and bought in at 1699.50 where the super heavy support was located for this section off the EMA.  Had my stop right before the next big order trading cluster at 1702.75.  Good exit, bad entry.

4.  9:33 - 2nd entry long formed 2 bars to the right but it was too far from the EMA or the lower trend line.  Price never got 1 point so I had my order at a heavy price cluster at 1702.75.  There wasn't anything to stop it if price broke over 1704.25 but it came back and took out my runner.

5.  9:45 - 2nd entry long but I didn't have a trend line or support area line in place.  Just a blind trade so I got out at BE.  Took the 2nd contract when price started struggling to push through the big cluster area at 1699.50.  Had a measured move down to the low but just took the sure profits.

6.  9:50 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the EMA.

7.  10:08 - 2nd entry long.  Thought it was off of support and a cluster area would hold it up.  Thought we were in a range and heading back to the top.  Obviously we are in a trend down.

8.  10:46 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the EMA and was looking for price to go to the lower end of the range.

9.  11:31 - 2nd entry long where I waited and got a better entry at the pink line that I thought was the bottom of a big trend up.

10.  12:37 - 2nd entry long off of a cluster support area and bottom of the range.  Should have gotten in 2-3 ticks better.

Missed Trades:

1.  8:39 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the EMA.  Was also the first major break of the original trend line.
2.  8:51 - 2nd entry long
3.  9:41 - 2nd entry short off of resistance area.
4.  10:11 - Short trap off of support area and a failed 2nd entry short if counting from the previous high.
5.  11:16 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the EMA.
6.  11:43 - 2nd entry short off of the upper trend line and the EMA.

10-14-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

1.  Focus on drawing and re-drawing the trend lines.  You have to get a lot of bounces off of a line for it to be legit.
2.  Small bars going in one direction is a strong trend.
3.  When price breaks a trend channel to the downside when in an uptrend and then goes up to create a new high then the rule is we will get at least a correction that lasts an hour or more.  After that you can start a new trend in either direction.
4.  When price breaks a trend channel to the upside when in a downtrend and then goes down to create a new low then the rule is we will get at least a correction that lasts an hour or more.  After that you can start a new trend in either direction.

Post Trading Notes:

It looks like there is definitely some merit to using the Jigsaw tool in conjunction with Mack's 2nd entries.  It looks like a tool to help decipher when to get in on 2nd entries by seeing if there is a high cluster area of trades when a 2nd entry or failed 2nd entry signals.  If there isn't a high cluster area then it may be best to avoid the trade b/c it seems like a 2nd entry with a high cluster area on the Jigsaw tool means there is a very high probability for the trade to be successful.  Will have to start back testing.  Probably not using it correctly but it seems to give you a good entry price.

I am taking the snapshot and adding it to the trade lists to keep track of what the clusters look like with Mack's trades on the Jigsaw device.

Took two bad trades (#5&6) due to frustration after missing a big move.  They worked out but it was b/c of dumb luck.  Very bad habit to get into.

#3 focus point from pre-trading notes netted me the biggest trade of the day.

Need to focus on failed 2nd entries b/c not only are they good on their own but they help confirm 2nd entries.

Mack's Notes:

1.  He didn't like trade #3 b/c there were 3 overlapping bars which creates a trading range and it still had a ways to go before it reached the lower trend line.
2.  Trend lines are the key so keep messing with them until you get them correct.  They are the key to trading his system.  Once you have them correctly drawn then your trading will become much easier.  He likes to find where you get the most touches from the bar closes for either side of the trend line.
3.  The more reasons you can find to enter a trade then the greater the chance for success.
4.  Studying what you did each day is better than trading in SIM.  The best thing you can do is go back over your trades each day and study your work.  Eventually you will get it at some point b/c you will come to realize all of the traps and tricks that fool you, there are a bunch of them.  Figure out what you did wrong and correct it.  Figure out what you did right and build on it.

Trades:

1.  8:01 - 2nd entry long off of double bottom.  Cluster in Jigsaw at 1686.00.

2.  8:32 - This wasn't a valid Mack trade.  Was messing around with the Jigsaw at a high cluster area.  Although it just missed a big run up if I had gotten in a tick better.
3.  8:59 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA at a big cluster area.

4.  9:06 - Got in too early.  Should have waited for the 2nd entry at 9:25 off of the lower trend line then I could have gotten in at a better price and it was where a cluster area was located.  The trade worked out I just had to be in it longer than I should have.

5.  1:33 - This wasn't a good trade at all even though it worked out.  I was a bit frustrated after the big run up I missed out on so I tried to force in a 2nd entry long close to the lower trend line even though it wasn't.  It was also too far away from the EMA.  Horrible trade.
6.  1:42 - Still frustrated after missing the big run up so what is the worst trade you can possibly take???? A short in a huge uptrend!  Somehow I got the scalp.  This is just horrible trading these past 2 trades.
7.  1:56 - Failed 2nd entry short and the 2nd entry long signaled one bar over.  I could have gotten in a lot better and would have had an even bigger runner.  Price had broken out of the uptrend channel for the first time so I was looking for it to go back up and at least test the previous high. There was also a big cluster at 1701.50.  Got out near the previous high.  Good trade.

Missed Trades:

1.  9:22 - 2nd entry long off of support level or the bottom trend line.
2.  9:59 - 2 legged pullback to the support level of the trading range
3.  10:15 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short.  This is a perfect trade to take 100% of the time!!!!!!!
4.  11:53 - 2nd entry long and a failed 2nd entry short.

10-10-2013

10-10-2013

Pre-Trading Notes:

Finally back after a long layoff.  Will do Mon-Thur most weeks if I am in town.  Back to the basics for a month or so until I can get myself back up to speed.

Will eventually spend the time learning the Jigsaw indicator and how to read it properly but right now it is back to the basics of Mack's style.

1.  Focus on identifying if we are in a trend or a range and which way the trend is going.

Post Trading Notes:

Real rusty but that is to be expected.  Still felt I recognized some good setups.  Missed a couple of trades.  Today had a good trending market so it wasn't too tough to recognize early that we were in a strong trend up.  Time to start doing these at least Mon - Thur.

My trend lines were a little off compared to Mack's correct lines.
Mack's lines are in black.

Mack's Notes:

1.  When you have small bars that keeping going in one direction then that is A STRONG TREND!
2.  RULE:  When you have a break in a channel and a new high the rule is we will get at least a correction that lasts an hour or more.  After that you can start a new trend either direction.
3.  You have to find the trend line that gets the most touches.  If you have a trend line that is not hit much then that is probably not a correct trend line.
4.  Your best setups will be around your trend lines and the EMA.

Trades:

1.  9:22 - 2nd entry long off of the lower trend line.  Had 2nd stop up around the upper trend line.
2.  10:25 - Failed 2nd entry short off of support area.
3.  11:17 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  Got out when it didn't go up right away.  Will get back in if a failed 2nd entry forms.
4.  11:57 - Turned out to be a good 2nd entry short signal where I went long.  I was looking for a failed 2nd entry short to go with the 2nd entry long.
5.  12:18 - Failed 2nd entry short off of the EMA.  Looking for price to go down to the lower trend channel.
6.  1:31 - 2nd entry long off of the bottom trend line.

Missed Trades:

1. 7:57 - Failed 2nd entry short.
2.  8:29 - 2nd entry long.  Breakout pullback long.
3.  8:53 - 2nd entry long off of the EMA.  Saw this in real time but missed getting in.
4.  10:01 - Failed 2nd entry long off of the EMA.