My Trading Quest

[Garry MTQ]

Hi Everyone,

I am new to this forum and would like to journal my journey for a new trading quest I have been thinking about for a long time.

I have been trading on and off for over 20 years and I have many scars to prove it. Recently, I became a funded trader with Topstep Trader using my own scalping system on US 30 Year Bonds. In the past I have traded Futures and Forex manually and with my own coded systems.

I have completed many trading courses and seminars. Most of the time I could not replicate their results! They often promise the world but most do not deliver.

Like most of us, I have been burned by these trading companies.

It is time to test these trading companies and see who can deliver.

My journal will my progression:

• I will explain why I chose the courses on the short list and why I chose the first one to test.
• Right through to setup, back-testing, live trading and hopefully to profitability
• I will explain what works and what doesn't
• I will not be sharing anything that is proprietary to the company

My goal is to see if I can become profitable in 90 days.

If I fail, then I will start again with another 90-day challenge ... until I find a profitable course.

I would love it if people have questions or can suggest things along the way.

If anyone would like to suggest a trading course to add to my list, I would appreciate it.

I am NOT associated with any Trading Company.

I am excited to share my journey and my results with you.

Come along with me on My Trading Quest!

Cheers
Garry

 

[Garry MTQ]

Why is our industry different?

Do you want to spend the next 10 – 20 years to learn how to trade profitably OR do you want to tap into someone who has achieved trading profitability and be profitable in 90 days?

If you read the forums you will see that there are a lot of readers that believe that if courses are sold then the product cannot be any good or it should be given away for free. WHY?

Why is this industry any different to any other?

The best way to learn, is from a mentor or coach who has achieved what you want to achieve and the conscious competence and skill to impart that knowledge to the student.

It costs a lot of money to learn to become a doctor so do we really believe that we can become a profitable trader without putting the same cost and effort in?

I believe that I can become profitable quicker with the help of the right mentor, coach or course.

The Other Side of the Coin – the student

I have been discussing the course, company and educator but there is another side to achieving success with trading.

The student must put the work in, otherwise you are wasting your time and money.


It is time to test these trading companies and see who can deliver!

My Trading Quest is to find those courses, put them to the test and ensure I put in the work to fairly test the process.

The problem is finding those courses through the marketing haze.

If I have to kiss a lot of Frogs, I will.

Can I find a Trading Course that can help me be profitable in 90 days?

 

[Garry MTQ]

The Beginning of my Process

Begin With the End in Mind

There are many trading companies out there that look like they can get you results.

But can you believe them?

Can you replicate their results?

Just remember: No matter how good a course is … YOU must put the work in!

The first thing you need to do before you choose a Trading Course is to understand why you want to become a trader, what you want from trading and what you are willing to do to achieve this goal.

Some questions to ask yourself

• Why do I want to trade?
• Can trading help me achieve my goal?
• How much money do I want to make from trading and by when?
• How much time can I put into trading? Both learning and trading.
• What time of the day will I be able to put into trading?
• How much money can I put into trading, that I can afford to lose?

These questions are important as they will help you choose what market and method of trading is for you.

My Answers to these questions are:

• I want to replace my income with a reliable and not limited source of income that gives me the freedom to explore the world.
• Yes, I have seen personal proof of people achieving financial freedom by using a trading vehicle.
• The goal of My Trading Quest is to be profitable in 90 days. For this Quest, I will aim for $1,000 per week (Average $200 per day) within 90 days. This is to be achieved by trading only 1 contract per trade.
• As each trading system can be effective at different times of the day, I will initially track all the trades each day to determine when it is the best time to trade. I want to achieve my goal of $200 per day by only trading about 2 hours per day.
• For the Quest, I will look at reducing my costs as low as possible.
• Some costs I cannot reduce such as the Course, Indicators, Data, Platform, and Internet fees
• Initially, I will trade in Sim until I am profitable. Profitable means that I am averaging $200 per day and have doubled my account.
• I will then participate in a Trading Combine to become a funded trader with the system. If I pass the Combine then the company will fund my trading account and pay me 80% of all my profit. There are costs of completing a combine (test) to become a funded trader, usually around $100 – $200 per month until you pass the combine. This should be a fair test of the system!
• If I plan to double my trading account, at an average of $200 per day and if I started with a starting Balance of $4,000 … it would take 20 days (4 weeks) to double my account.

Do You believe my goal is realistic?​

Questions to ask before committing to a Trading Course:

How do you choose a Trading Course when you cannot believe the reported results and testimonials? Guru’s who do not trade, change the results, pay people for testimonials and many other devious “marketing” secrets!

There are a number of excellent trading companies out there so how can we find them?

The most asked questions or should be asked before someone commits to a Trading Course are:

• Is the trading method profitable?
• Are other traders profitable trading this method?
• Can I do this?
• Do I have time to do this?
• How long will it take me to be profitable?
• How much is this going to cost me?
• How much capital will I need?

One of the most forgotten questions, that is critical to your success and psychology:

• What is the Risk to Reward. How much am I risking in each trade compared to how much I can make (Reward). I will discuss this more in later posts.

These are all great questions that need to be considered when looking at trading courses.

Cheers
Garry

 

[Garry MTQ]

Researching trading courses can be difficult and time-consuming.

It is critical that you do your due diligence before spending your hard-earned dollars on any course.

How do you know if what a trading company is telling you, is truthful?

You need to ask plenty of questions.

Can you trust:

• Testimonials – some pay people to praise them in testimonials
• That they trade a live account – some look like they trade but don’t!
• Results – are they real? Some only record wins!
• Videos – are they cherry-picking winning trades?
• Do they keep changing the rules?
• If you are in a losing run, do they say “everyone loses … you will be profitable in the long run”
• If they do not have statistics for their setups?
• Don’t follow their own rules
• Won’t let you talk to their students or allow only hand-picked students
• Won’t return emails promptly
• the list goes on …

I have noticed that a number of courses are being taught by people with questionable pasts. Just within 1 hour from where I live there are at least 5 trading course companies where the head trainer has either spent several years in jail, lost their financial license, banned from being a Director or had numerous complaints against them for false/misleading advertising.

I am not trying to scare you but trying to impress upon you the importance of doing proper due diligence. Also, it is not about holding someone’s past against them … it is just about being informed so you can make informed decisions.

My Approach:

• Learn as much about a company from the internet and personal contact with the company. It is amazing how much you can learn on the internet from complaints, reviews, past presentations, hidden results, documents, old and new videos and much more …
• Participate in any activity they put on including webinars, live workshops, conferences, free courses, Live trading rooms, Facebook, etc
• Ask questions of their students. Contact with these students can often be via the live events, Facebook or if all else fails then by asking for some names and contact details of students.
• Ask questions of the trainers and ask for proof
• Do not accept what anyone says ... trust but check
• The Quality of Answers is a direct reflection of the Quality of the Questions

What am I looking for:

• Trust and Transparency
• Are they trading what they teach, successfully ?
• Are their students achieving good results using the system?
• I want to know that I can do it!
• What is the Risk/Reward for the trading setups?
• Some basic statistics eg: average win, average loss, winning percentage, average trade net profit, max consecutive losses, max drawdown, number of trades per day/week and how long have they been trading this system
• What does their course cover and how is it delivered?
• What is the initial cost and ongoing costs?

Remember, Do not accept what anyone says ... trust but check

Cheers
Garry

 

[Garry MTQ]

A Quick Update: I will be attending an all-day webinar on Saturday to gather more information in my development of a shortlist. Hopefully, by early next week, I will share my shortlist of courses.

Until then I would like to ask you:

Would you be happy with my goal of averaging $200 per day ($1000 PW) using 1 contract, in 90 days if you were doing this quest? If not, then please tell me why.

Your help is appreciated

Cheers
Garry

 

[Garry MTQ]

Worthy of Mention!

Choosing my shortlist has been an interesting and time consuming exercise.

From the shortlist, I will compare and decide which course I will trial for the first 90-day challenge.

I have decided that I will only choose Futures Trading Courses for my short-list for this Quest.

One of the courses in my top 5 was a Forex course which is worthy of mentioning. It ticked a lot of the boxes and you can read belong my comments about the course.

​

Tribe of Traders – Forex
Website: https://www.tribeoftraders.com/

What they say about their Company:

• A Forex company based in London
  
• Trades and teaches 2 Semi-Automated Strategies
• Claim to achieve 74% Success rate consistently trading less than 30 mins per day
• Focused on Community, Education, Psychology, Money Management and Minimum Effective trading time
• Platform – MT4
• If you use their Broker and are profitable then you may have an opportunity to become a Funded Trader
• 30-day Money-back Guarantee

My Observations:

• Appear to be trustworthy and care about their community
• Strategies are simple and appear to have great results
• Students appear to get good results
• Easy to do and doesn’t take a lot of time. Initially, I would suggest 1 -2 hours per day (at most)
• Cost for their trading-business-in-a-box is approx 997 Pounds then 47 Pounds per month
• 30-day Money-back Guarantee – Not many trading companies are willing to offer a Guarantee!
• No obvious negatives as long as you want to trade Forex

My Experience with this Company:

• I have followed this company for a couple of years
• Watched most of their interviews, videos, webinars and Facebook posts
• Have a basic understanding of how the systems work
• Have reviewed and tracked their system trades both live and back tested

Resources

• Trading Nut interview with a student of Tribe of Traders Episode 154 https://tradingnut.com/goran-carlfors/
• Two Trading Nut interviews with the creator of Tribe of Traders – Judy Van Niekirk
  https://tradingnut.com/judy-van-niekerk/ and https://tradingnut.com/judy-van-niekerk-money/
• Facebook https://www.facebook.com/tribeoftraders/

The following resource is a free ebook which explains Forex vs Futures from an interesting perspective:

• Forex vs Futures – The Global Deception Continues by Lachlan Elsworth https://www.idta.com.au/i-love-trading/

Note: it requires you to enter your email address but is worth reading.

Feedback

If you have any experience with The Tribe of Traders then please let me know about both your good and bad experiences.

If you have a course to recommend for the Challenge then please send through the details and I will look at it to see how it compares to the shortlist.

Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies. ​

 

[Garry MTQ]

The first Trading Course Contender

The two trading course contenders are Futures Courses

From the shortlist, I will compare and decide which course I will trial for the first 90-day challenge.

The first trading course contender is…

​

IDTA International Day Traders Academy – Futures
Website: https://www.idta.com.au

What they say about their Company:

• A Futures trading company based in Australia and with students in over 21 countries
  
• Trades and teaches in 3 Live Trading Rooms, Online Courses and Live in House.
• Performance is posted on the website
• Appears to have Excellent results from students who are only trading 90 mins per day
• Focused on Community, Education, Psychology, Money Management, Minimum Effective trading time and the Business of Trading
• Platform – NT7
• They have a number of free introductory webinars – Basic intro to IDTA and what they do, a more detailed Workshop on how they trade and a trial period in their Live Trading Room (currently during the European Open).
• The cost depends upon the course and package. Ranges from about $5000 – $20,000 AUD depending on the course. The most expensive is the Trading Business School – 12 month program.
• On-going monthly costs commence at the end of the package you purchase. Other on-going costs include software and LTR costs.
• All the courses include a Coaching component
• They are growing quickly and are innovative with ways to help students

My Observations:

• Appear to be professional, genuine, trustworthy and care about their community
• Strategies are simple and appear to have great results with limited daily trading time
• After discussions with their students, a lot appears to get great results
• The live trading room (LTR) moderators are excellent, especially Lachy, who trades while he explains very clearly what, where and why he believes what is happening in the markets. His market calls are clear and in advance. I have been in many rooms and he is one of the best, if not the best
• You won’t be doing this alone … just the information in the Live Trading Rooms is a big asset
• I was impressed that some of the students out perform the moderator. The moderator is more concerned with the students understanding what is happening in the market then his own results.
• They have a Learning Pathway to take you from beginner to having your own trading business
• They lead by example – a number are living the laptop travel life, even Lachy who developed the system is travelling, trading and facilitating in the LTR. Showing it can be done!
• They are not pushy if you sign up for any of their free introductions
• The Risk to Reward can be quite high sometimes. They stress, to only trade within your risk limits
• The cost of the courses is higher than the average course but if you achieve some of the results that their students are achieving then the return on investment would be fantastic

Response to recent world events and volatility:

• Results continue to be exceptional
• Commenced promotions on the use of Micro Instruments to limit risk
• Educating members on Health and Mindset in Challenging Times – 4 part online series

My Experience with this Company:

• I have followed this company for a number of years
• Watched most of their videos, webinars, conferences and Facebook posts
• Have an understanding of how their systems work
• Know and followed a number of students who have had mixed results. Some fantastic but others only break even
• The results over the last year have been incredible for a lot of their students and they make it usually in 90 mins of trading
• The cost of the courses are higher than the average course in the industry
• In the last couple of years, the company appears to be getting much better results

Resources

• IDTA – Online Free Worshop https://www.idta.com.au/workshop
• IDTA – Live On Demand Introductory webinar https://www.idta.com.au/on-demand
• Live Trading Room – Trading Performance
  https://www.idta.com.au/category/members-performance/
• Live Trading Room Tour https://www.idta.com.au/live-trading-room/

Feedback

If you have any experience with IDTA then please let me know about both your good and bad experiences.

If you have a course to recommend for the Challenge then please send through the details and I will look at it to see how it compares to the shortlist.



Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

Trading Course Contender #2

The second and final contender for my first 90-day Challenge

I will now compare the two contenders and decide which I believe will help me on my journey to profitability.

In no particular order – The second trading course is…



Apex Investing – Futures
Website: https://apexinvesting.com/bootcamp/

What they say about their Company:

• Predominantly a Futures trading company based in the US

• Trades and teaches in 1 Live Trading Room which is open 24 x 7, Online Courses, Skype mentor rooms, regular webinars, and Facebook group

• 2 Moderators, trade, call and discuss the trades when appropriate. They are in the live room from 9:30 EST until at least 11:00 am.

• Free Sniper Trading Bootcamp (no Credit card) with access to course, training, tools, indicators and trading room. Free for 30 days than currently only $1 for the next 30 days.

• The Bootcamp is structured to give you all the tools and support to be successful

• Appears to have Excellent results from students

• Focused on making the trading as easy possible for the students, Making 3 profitable trades and finishing for the day, Community and regular Education

• Recently introduced a Semi-automated Trade Assistant

• Platform – NT7

• The Sniper Bootcamp focuses on trading the NQ but the methodology can work on any market

• After your first 30 days (free) and your next 30 days(currently $1) then the cost depends upon the plan. Plans are Sniper, Gold or Platinum and you can pay monthly, annual or lifetime. The starting costs are Monthly $200 pm, Annual $2000 or Lifetime $4000. The lifetime is definitely the best value.

• The Bootcamp is for everyone from beginner to experienced

• Support is excellent

• They are growing quickly and are innovative with ways to help students

My Observations:

• Appear to be very knowledgeable, genuine, trustworthy and care about their students being profitable

• Darrell, who is the owner of the business makes some very large trades with this method

• Trade setups are easy but need practice

• You must understand the rules as others in the rooms may not be following the rules

• In an effort to make the system easier they regularly slightly modify the rules to some setups – this can be good and bad. I appreciate why they do it.

• Students have commented that the current system that Apex is using, is the best system Apex have had

• Students appear to achieve their goals quickly at the start of the US open

• The cost, the length of the trial and what you receive is very unusual in the trading industry

• The cost after the trial is very reasonable

Response to recent world events and volatility:

• Results continue to be exceptional

• They have changed the market that they focus on due to the increased volatility. They now recommend ES (mini) or the MES (micro) as the main market to start with.

• I am really impressed by how they make it so you can try and trade their system for very little money upfront or when you start trading. A lot of people do not have the money at present and this solution is very viable.

• Basically, you could start testing and trading this method for Free in month 1.

• In Month 2 it will cost $1 for all the tools and support.

• If you are confident and/or didn’t want to risk your own capital, you could sign up with a Funding Company that Apex has just partnered with.

• This will allow you to pass a trading test which requires you to trade a minimum of 10 days and reach a profit goal based on the package you purchase.

• $160 for 30 days, would allow you to trade with up to 8 contracts and the target is $3000. After you pass the test the only cost is approx $90 per month. They pay you 100% for the first $8000 profit you make and then 80%. If you are with them after 1 year then the profit share to you is 90%

• The rules that the Funding Company is basically only 1 rule. Nothing like the other Funding Companies that seem to want to fail you and have many rules.

My Experience with this Company:

• I signed up for some information about this company in 2014, but didn’t remember it until I was talking to the owner

• Had discussions with the Owner and he happily answered all my questions

• Watched most of their videos, webinars and Facebook posts

• Have an understanding of how their system work

• Followed and discussed results with several of their students. All positive comments. The results vary but generally achieving 60 – 90% wins.

Resources

Apex Sniper Bootcamp Info and Video https://apexinvesting.com/bootcamp/

APEX Investing Facebook https://www.facebook.com/apexinvesting/


Feedback

If you have any experience with APEX Investing, especially the new Sniper Bootcamp then please let me know about both your good and bad experiences.

If you have a course to recommend for the Challenge then please send through the details and I will look at it to see how it compares to the shortlist.


Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

PART A - Winning Trading Course and Why!

I thought this would be easier!

Deciding between the final two Trading Course contenders for my first 90-Day Challenge has been harder then I expected.

Can you pick what one I have chosen?​

Just remember: No matter how good a course is … I must put the work in!

No course is perfect, so choosing one is about finding the one that is the closest fit to what I require.

In case you missed the last two posts, the two courses I am choosing between are:

IDTA International Day Traders Academy – Futures
Website: https://www.idta.com.au

Apex Investing – Futures
Website: https://apexinvesting.com/bootcamp/


Let’s review some of the criteria I require in a course and how these courses compare:


Trust and transparency

After discussions and observations with the Owners, moderators, and students, both these companies appear trustworthy with a high level of transparency.

Are they trading what they teach, successfully?

IDTA has a number of strategies that the students use based on their experience and risk profile. The moderators and owners do exactly the same, if the setup meets the individual’s trading plan then they trade it. So, yes they do trade what they teach and achieve great results (observed).

Apex Investing has two moderators who use the basic setups and some slightly more advanced setups. The advanced strategies are slowly being introduced to students as they become more competent with the basics.

Are their students achieving good results using the system?

IDTA has a number of students who appear to be outperforming the moderators.

Apex Investing has been around for a number of years but the Sniper Bootcamp focus has only been around since mid-2019. The main focus is for the students to achieve 3 net winning trades and then stop trading. Most of the students within a short period achieve this goal. The owner has some very impressive trades on most days.

If I was to achieve what the students achieve, would the results meet my goals?

From all my research and observations, It would appear that if I put the work in then I should reach my goals using either of the courses.

Can I see myself doing this course and trading this way?

The strategies from both of the companies appear to be relatively easy to learn and implement. As long as I put the work in, I can see myself using either company. The strategies are very different from each other.

Is it possible to be profitable in 90 days using this system?

From all my research and observations, It would appear that if I put the work in then I should be profitable in 90 days, using either of the courses.

Continued in Part B

 

[Garry MTQ]

PART B - Winning Trading Course and Why!

How much is it going to cost, initial and ongoing costs? Is this good value?

This is one of the big separators between the two companies.

IDTA

• The cost depends upon the course and package. Ranges from about $5000 – $20,000 AUD depending on the course. The most expensive is the Trading Business School – 12-month program.
• On-going monthly costs commence at the end of the package you purchase. Other on-going costs include software and LTR costs.

Apex Investing

• Basically, you could start testing and trading this method for Free in month 1. All tools, training, and support are provided.
• In Month 2 it will cost US $1 for all the tools, training and support.
• If you are confident and/or don’t want to risk your own capital, you could sign up with a Funding Company that Apex has just partnered with.
• This will allow you to pass a trading test which requires you to trade a minimum of 10 days and reach a profit goal based on the package you purchase. The cost is US $160 for 30 days. Apex at present, have discounts on the first month
• $160 for 30 days, would allow you to trade with up to 8 contracts and the target is $3000. After you pass the test the only cost is approx US $90 per month. They pay you 100% for the first $8000 profit you make and then 80%. If you are with them after 1 year then the profit share to you is 90%
• The rules that the Funding Company is basically only 1 rule. Nothing like the other Funding Companies that seem to want to fail you and have many rules.

Apex Investing does offer more advanced courses but does not push them. They believe you can be profitable just with the Sniper Bootcamp Course.

Is the Risk/Reward for the trading setups within my risk profile?

Both companies have high win rates which can often hide the risk/reward factor.

The risk/reward refers to the risk you have when you enter a trade. So if with a stop of $100 then the risk is $100. The reward is what profit you are aiming for. So if you have a stop (risk) of $100 and a profit target (reward) of $100, then the Risk/reward would be 1:1. A lot of companies suggest that a 1:1 is what people should aim for. Yes, that would be nice but market conditions don’t always allow for that.

IDTA uses market action to determine where the stops are placed and as soon as the market supports reducing the risk then they move the stop. I have observed, especially in this current high volatility market the initial risk/reward for IDTA to be in the range from 1:1 to 6:1. What this means is that if you lose 1 trade and your risk/reward is 3:1 then you will need 3 winning trades to be back to being even. This assumes that the risk dollars and the reward dollars are equal in each trade.

As you become more advanced IDTA teaches you how to go for longer targets which the R:R.

They stress that the higher risk trades should only be taken if you and your account can afford to risk that amount. The other option is to use micros instead of mini contracts to reduce the dollar risk.

Apex Investing also uses market action to determine the stop location. Basically, it works out as a risk/reward of approximately 2.2:1. Methods to reduce the risk during the trade are discussed in the course.

Trailing and longer targets are taught as you become more experienced. This allows the R:R to reduce.

As part of the Bootcamp, Apex Investing has used mini and micro charts for their trades.

If I have a problem, will I be supported in a timely fashion

Both companies respond to problems in a timely fashion using different methods.

It is important to say that in both, it is essential to ask for help if you are struggling. And if someone doesn’t answer your question then ask it again.

IDTA uses the course coaching, Live Trading Room, private Facebook group, Hub and directly to the head office. They operate 3 live trading rooms with moderators per day. They are the Euro Open, pre US Open and US Open.

The Hub is a group of IDTA traders within a geographical area, who meet monthly or at regular periods. The Hubs can be via the internet or in person. Sometimes all the global hubs connect for meetings. Hubs are only as good as the people and leaders in it. From discussions with hub members, it would appear that they work really well and support is always available form the hubs.

Apex Investing use in the course stresses that you need to ask questions and post charts (both wins and losses) to be a success. They have a roadmap to walk you through the start, setup, and sequence to learn. This includes recorded videos, checklists, regular weekly (1 or 2 PW) live training where you can ask any questions, a Facebook group to post charts or questions in and a trading room that stays open 24 x 7.

The trading room is where anyone can ask questions and post charts at any time of the day or night. Live charts are streamed in this room at all times. The two moderators are in the room form 930 am US EST until at least 11 am. The focus is usually on one market where they call trades and discuss the reason to enter or stay out of trades.

Darrell, the owner and one of the moderators will often be in the trading room at other times of the day or night where he may share his wisdom, answer questions or just be trading.

After the first two months and you have joined Apex then you will be invited into a small group (approx 20) where you have skype access to a small group of traders who also share questions, charts, and support. The two moderators regularly pop into these groups to answer questions and give support.

So, you always have somewhere to ask questions and get help if needed.

Does the course cover things from the basics of running a trading business?

Both courses take you from beginner to futures to running a trading business.

Does the company incorporate continuous improvement into the business?

Yes, both of the companies do incorporate CI into the business.

IDTA appears to fully test and evaluate any potential improvements before implementing them. The basic structure has not changed in a number of years, only slight improvements have been made.

Apex Investing has only introduced the Sniper Bootcamp over the last year and has made a number of small changes or clarifications along the way.

Check out Part C … coming soon

 

[Garry MTQ]

PART C - Winning Trading Course and Why!

Summary of Comparison:

• In most areas, the two courses/companies appear to be capable of achieving the results I want.

• The two standout differences are:
  • Initial and on-going costs
  • Risk:Reward

These numbers are normally important but are so critical now, due to the current world situation where huge numbers of people are out of work and need an income.


It doesn’t matter how much a course costs if it doesn’t deliver!


THE WINNER IS …

Apex Investing – Futures
Website: https://apexinvesting.com/bootcamp/


Will this course deliver?


Now, the work begins as I start the course and journal my path to profitability …

Feedback

If you have any questions or comments then, please let me know

Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

Hi Everyone,

I have had computer and internet issues for the last week so I haven't posted.

Today is Day 1 in putting the Apex Investing to the test. I have 90 days to reach profitability, so I have to get moving.

DAY 1 – Walkthrough the Apex Sniper Trading Bootcamp …

I was pleasantly surprised that no credit card was required for the sign up to the free first month.

Day 1: I will walk through everything so I can see what I have to do and I can get organized.

So what do I get for the free first month? Surprisingly a lot!

• All of the Sniper Bootcamp training and recommended fast track path
• Access to the live trading room, forum, Facebook page, private Facebook group, and help desk
• Access to all weekly webinars
• Access to all Sniper Ninjatrader 7 indicators, tools and help to install if required

You have responsibilities as well:

• Watch all the videos in order
• Only learn Setup 2 and leave the rest until you have mastered it
• Post your charts in the room and ask questions, questions and more questions
• Focus on one market
• The daily goal is to have 3 net positive trades then stop
• Record all your trades with a marked-up chart to the spreadsheet which is provided
• Practice
• Be in the trading room from 930 am EST to 11 am if you can
• Attend the weekly webinars if you can, otherwise watch the recording and do any homework
• Participate

Everything can be accessed from the login page.


The Bootcamp page appears to cover everything that is needed. Topics include:

• New fast start and welcome which includes video, checklist, and links to setting up Ninjatrader
• Account Funding videos
• Weekly webinar information and sign up
• First Basic Trade Setup training Setup 2
• Cheat sheets and Summary files
• Access to the trading room – and tools for capturing the charts
• Access to the forum, Facebook group page, and competitions (They regularly run competitions where you can win membership prizes and even a lifetime membership)
• Setting up NT, placing trades, etc ( if you have a problem setting it up then they will help)
• How to install the Apex Tool Kit which gives you access to all the data and indicators
• How to set up the charts, levels, and templates
• Setting up ATM, take profit and placing orders
• Tutorials on how to master Ninjatrader
• What’s next section
• Basics on sniper charts
• Next Trading setup which is a slight variation of Setup 2
• Link to more information on the Semi-Automation (not included in the trial)
• What to buy if you need a trading computer
• Trading Psychology videos
• How to master the first setups
• Market review videos – Bar by bar playback and education
• How to do Market Replays with NT7
• Trader Tax tips
• At this point, it is suggested that the rest of the setups are not looked at until you master the first Setup 2.
• The rest of the setups are available to view anyway.
• A section on the Basics of futures and money management

After skimming through all these sections I was very impressed with the information available.

The page just didn’t flow as I would like. Some sections are definitely not in the right sequence. This shouldn’t make any difference as I will just follow each and if I don’t need that section at present I will mark it to come back to it. An example would be the account funding is section 2 but that will not be required until later.

I listened to this week’s webinar and they have started a series on how to get the most out of the trial and they suggested that some of the sections can be left until later. They are running three webinars this week.

So what is next?

I will start going through the videos and take the actions to get started

I will report back tomorrow on my progress and any lessons I learn
​

Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Joe Blow]

Hi Garry,

I just thought I'd jump in here and set some guidelines for this thread.

Let’s review some of the criteria I require in a course and how these courses compare:


Trust and transparency

You require trust and transparency from trading courses and I require the same from those posting here at ASF. I'm sure you can appreciate that.

This is your stated aim, as set out in your first post:

My goal is to see if I can become profitable in 90 days.

That's an ambitious goal and I'm sure there are many interested observers out there who would be interested in the results of your experiment.

However, in the name of trust and transparency, I am going to have to insist that all trades (paper or live) be called live. What that means in practice is that you are going to have to post all your entries and exits within five minutes of executing each trade. Please time stamp the trade in your post and post the stock, index, currency pair, or instrument you are trading and the entry or exit price as well.

That is the only way those reading this thread can be sure that "trust and transparency" is first and foremost in your reviews. Posting hindsight trades just isn't going to work for a thread like this as there is no way to verify hindsight trades. Each and every trade you take must be called live in this thread.

As someone who clearly values trust and transparency I'm sure that you understand how necessary this is to the integrity of what you are setting out to demonstrate and I look forward to your co-operation.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

 

[Garry MTQ]

Hi Garry,

I just thought I'd jump in here and set some guidelines for this thread.



You require trust and transparency from trading courses and I require the same from those posting here at ASF. I'm sure you can appreciate that.

This is your stated aim, as set out in your first post:


That's an ambitious goal and I'm sure there are many interested observers out there who would be interested in the results of your experiment.

However, in the name of trust and transparency, I am going to have to insist that all trades (paper or live) be called live. What that means in practice is that you are going to have to post all your entries and exits within five minutes of executing each trade. Please time stamp the trade in your post and post the stock, index, currency pair, or instrument you are trading and the entry or exit price as well.

That is the only way those reading this thread can be sure that "trust and transparency" is first and foremost in your reviews. Posting hindsight trades just isn't going to work for a thread like this as there is no way to verify hindsight trades. Each and every trade you take must be called live in this thread.

As someone who clearly values trust and transparency I'm sure that you understand how necessary this is to the integrity of what you are setting out to demonstrate and I look forward to your co-operation.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

Sounds good to me … When I begin live sim and live trading I will be happy to post within 5 mins after the trade. Thanks for the guidelines.

Cheers
Garry

 

[Joe Blow]

Sounds good to me … When I begin live sim and live trading I will be happy to post within 5 mins after the trade. Thanks for the guidelines.

No problem. I'm glad to hear you're happy with the guidelines. Hopefully this will be an educational thread for those watching.

 

[Garry MTQ]

DAY 2 – Apex Sniper Trading Bootcamp Lessons…

It has been time to put the work in setting up, watching videos and taking notes.

Actions I took:

• Watched introductory and setup videos
• Setup my NT7 with the Apex Toolkit and templates
• Watched the Chart Overview videos to understand the differences with Apex
• Logged into the trading room and watched the two facilitators call trades and educate for 2 hours from the US market open
• Commence studying the first setup

Apex Toolkit:

Once you have NT7 installed then you are required to download and install the Apex Toolkit. This easy and if you have problems then the help desk will help.

I had a problem with installing on one of my computers and was helped within an hour of my request. It was a windows problem.

This toolkit gives you access to all the Sniper indicators and templates. It is regularly updated and is essential for trading the systems.

I also downloaded some OP Data (order print historical data). Normally you don’t need to do this as the OP Data is developed as the market data moves. It is important to know that if your computer or trading platform is not connected to the data server then you will miss out on OP Data. This is easily solved by asking someone in the room to send the missing data to you. Then simply copy it to your computer and restart NT7. All instructions are on the Bootcamp page.

So why do we need OP Data?

First I will show you a Sniper Chart:



This is a simple Sniper Chart and initially, I didn’t understand the lines and the boxes. In the videos they show the motor behind this charts



So, as you can see the visible charts that are used in the Sniper Bootcamp are based on the Order Flow charts and using algorithms to simplify it for the user.

The OP Data is the data that is generated and used on the trading chart.

The Benefit of this approach is that it simplifies the setups to make it easier to identify

Video Training
Most of the videos use NQ as the trading instrument. Due to the increase in volatility they have moved their focus to ES. The setups apparently work on most markets. To learn the strategy they prefer that students learn on one market initially.

Trading Room Experience
The room was an interesting experience where trades were called and some education was shared.

At this time I don’t think I will spend much time in the Market Open period as it can become confusing when the information shared is more advanced then a beginner. I can see it being very helpful but not just yet.

I also noticed that Darrell, the founder of Apex, was trading, calling trades and sharing his knowledge in the room in the US evening time.

The room is open 24 x 7 days and people are commenting and/or asking questions on and off during that time.

So what is next?
I will focus on the first setup and being able to identify it.

I will report back tomorrow on my progress and any lessons I learn

Disclaimer
I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

DAY 3 – Apex Sniper Trading Bootcamp Lessons and Setup 2 …

Today, I will share more on the chart setup and the first trade setup

Actions I took:

• Watched more videos
• Explored the daily process of chart setup
• Continued to learn about the first setup and what it looked like on the chart

Pre-trading Chart Setup:
Before trading each day starting to trade I go to the 10, 60 and 240 minute charts and share the levels from these charts with my trading chart. It takes less than 5 minutes to do this.

Instruments Traded and charts

Up until the high volatility the sniper bootcamp was designed for the NQ and MNQ.

Trade setups could be found on either chart and traded on the other. (Micro <>Mini).

With the increase in volatility the ES and MES became the choice of instrument.

Sniper Charts use an inhouse designed bar, similar to a renko bar but apparently more accurate to increase the accuracy of the algorithms for the Order Prints.

Bar size for NQ is 10 ticks and ES is 8 Ticks.

Experienced traders, trade the setups on all the usual instruments.

The Sniper Bootcamp

The basic philosophy of the Bootcamp is to give you the information, tools and support to help you to be profitable trading 1 contract for 3 months then increasing the contracts after you have been profitable and consistent. They want the students to have 3 net profitable trades and then stop.

They recommend that you start trading only in one market and one setup (Setup #2). They say that Setup #2 is over 85% of the trades they take.

They do give you access to all the other setups.

Trade Setup #2

Trade Setup # 2 is actually 5 setups based on a basic setup.

• Multi-directional
• Trend
• Range
• Divergence
• Continuation (New)

The idea is to start with the first and master it then move to the next.

The basic setup revolves around a Reversal Bar, Exhaustion and Trapped Orders in the market. This is displayed on the chart so it is easy to see.

The Exhaustion is a Box on the bar and the Trapped Orders are a blue solid box. And they must appear on a Reversal Bar.

See below to see what I mean:

​

This is the easy part. There are some rules with each setup and I will explain the first one, tomorrow.

From what I can see so far, the hardest part is knowing when Not to enter a trade.


I will report back tomorrow on my progress and any lessons I learn

Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

DAY 4 – Apex Sniper Trading Bootcamp Setup 2 and Testing …

Today, I will share more on the chart setup called the Enhanced Trapped X Box and identify all the setup’s on a static chart, just for one day.

I need to be able to identify the setup, see that the trade occurs a reasonable amount of times and see if it shows any signs of being profitable

Actions I took:

• Watched more videos
• Identified the rules for the first setup including Initial Stop and Profit Target
• Reviewed one day of trading on a static chart, to see the availability and results of the setup
• Continued to learn about the first setup and what it looked like on the chart

Videos:

It is important to take good notes and watch the videos in sequence as it makes it easier to understand.

Enhanced Trapped X Box

Yesterday, I introduced the basic requirements for Setup #2. Now I am going to explain the first setup which I called Multi-directional.

This trade is called the Enhanced Trade or the Enhanced Trapped X Box. The multi-directional refers that it can be taken in both directions – with the trend or against the trend.

Rules:

The first 2 rules are as explained yesterday.

• Setup must be a Reversal bar
• An exhaustion box with a trapped order must appear on the end of the bar

The additional rules are:

• A new print of either a MM or a Paw must occur on the setup bar.
• An existing level (OP Level) must be within 2 ticks of the new MM or Paw on the setup bar.

I won’t go into a lot of detail about what these lines and levels are.

• OP Levels are either:
  • MM is a beige line which represents lines where price has strong rejection or attraction
  • Paw is an orange line formed at weak price levels
  • ZOI is a Zone of Interest where the market has a lot of participation in this area
  • I-Blocks – are where large orders are placed

The next important rules are based on Reasons Not to Enter:

• Not within 5 minutes of Market Open, Close or Government News
• Not directly into a stack of 3 or more OP Levels
• Not enter when 2 clusters appear within 3 bars of the and including the entry bar
• Not against a strong trend

Stop and Target

• The initial Stop is 1 tick above/below the setup bar (17 ticks)
• The Target is 9 ticks

The following image will give you an idea of how simple it is to identify the trade.

​

So, now I have a basic understanding of this setup I need to see if the setup is easy to identify on first a static chart and then on a moving chart. On the static chart, I also want to see that the setup happens regularly and looks like it can be profitable.

I was talking to one trader and he said that recently the number of Enhanced Trades have reduced recently.

Because of the Risk: Reward of the rules it is important to have a minimum of approximately 72% wins.

Please note this test is not suggesting anything more than that this setup has or has not sufficient potential to keep investigating. This is a TEST nothing more!

For the test I will use the following criteria:

• The test is on a static ES chart (I will go bar by bar to test the day)
• The day will be the Friday 17th April session which starts at the open on the 16th April at 18:05 and Ends at 15:50 on the 17th.
• No commission is included
• I will follow the rules the best I can
• I may miss trades
• The test is for the 24 hours and this would not be possible

The following image shows my results:

Comments on Results:

The results look positive and justify’s further backtesting.

I will report back tomorrow on my progress and any lessons I learn​

Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

DAY 5 – Apex Sniper Trading Bootcamp Setup 2 more Backtesting …

Today, I backtested more and check that my observations are correct.

I need to be able to identify the setup, see that the trade occurs a reasonable amount of times and see if it shows any signs of being profitable

Actions I took:

• Watched more videos – 2 new webinars from this week
• Backtested 2 more days
• Another Apex trader checked to see if my trades were valid

Videos:

Apex Investing held two more webinars on how to make the most of the Bootcamp. I found them very helpful.

Backtested:

I continued to backtest on a static chart, bar by bar to help me identify the setup.

The results are below.

I used the same criteria as yesterday.

Please note this test is not suggesting anything more than that this setup has or has not sufficient potential to keep investigating. This is a TEST nothing more!

Comments on Results:

The results still look positive.




Traders helping Traders

I find that if you ask a question or post a chart on the Facebook page or in the trading room, traders are willing to help.

One of the traders was willing to check my trades as I backtested each day.

On the day that I reviewed yesterday, I had recorded one winning trade that was not valid.

It helps when someone reviews your charts and results.



I will report back tomorrow on my progress and any lessons I learn


Disclaimer

I am not affiliated with any of these companies.

 

[Garry MTQ]

First Live Sim Trade - 1 contract +$95 Net

The following image shows my first live sim trade.

As you can see It was A ETX (Red Box and Blue inside) and had a new MM on an Existing ZOI.

So it was a valid short.

The negatives of the trade was that the market was in a range but it just had sufficient room for target to be hit before the 2nd MM.

I had left my target at 8 ticks and the target was hit.