# spread betting & trend following



## wellray (3 Sep 2008)

Having read Shipman, Covel and Malcolm Pryor's books I've been trying to find good charting sites which use the ADX indicator which can also alert for stocks, e.g. select all S&P500 stocks with an ADX >=30. 
I want to try some of the strategies in these books using simulators before taking the plunge with real cash. I wanted to wait before signing up to a monthly subscription, at least until I've actually started betting.
While I'm at it, where would you find a back testing feature for new strategies?
Can anyone help?


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## limerickboy1 (4 Sep 2008)

www.igindex.co.uk

create an account, you can then access the charts without having to trade. none of these sites have a monthly subscription


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## wellray (4 Sep 2008)

Thanks Limerickboy, I watched the video on IGindex and it looks excellent, except there's no simulator, but I can always use one from another site.

Has anyone had any luck using the strategies in Pryor, Shipman or Covells books, or did you need to add refinements?


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## limerickboy1 (5 Sep 2008)

i have tried shipmans approach a little but im not gone on it. you will end up tweaking it to your own liking but its definetely a good start to get familiar


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## wellray (5 Sep 2008)

fair enough, it is very simple and exit criteria aren't very detailed. Can you tell me did you back test the tweaks and how?


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## z106 (5 Sep 2008)

Go here for backtesting

www.*wealth*-*lab*.com


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## sax_eddie (21 Oct 2008)

Wellray - I have read Malcolm Pryor's book, as well as Turtles, and various others on trading, particularly trend based, and mechanical systems. I'm currently looking to do exactly what you are - develop a profitable trading system applied to spread betting. 

I have been looking around for data and come to the conclusion that one needs something like sharescope to a. access accurate daily data and b. provide the facility to record all trades etc. 

I'm not sure if sharescope has the capability to do the backtesting and automatic searching (eg all shares with ADX >= 30), but I think it's worthwhile just for the data. You can export data, meaning if it can't do something that one needs, one can export and do the query in excel or VBA or something (I come from a software background). 

I would be happy to share ideas/resources since it seems that we are on a similar path.

Cheers
Eddie


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## mlane51 (29 Dec 2008)

Does  anybody  know of  a  spreadbetting group   and  of  courses  in  spreadbetting   to   tutor  and   advance  ones  knowledge  of  the  subject  . Martin


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## jimbobman (30 Dec 2008)

me


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## aedsys (8 Feb 2009)

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[broken link removed]

 If you have a specific query relating to anything in the property industry, use our Ask the Experts section and one of our members will answer your question personally.


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## lemur (8 Feb 2009)

wellray said:


> Having read Shipman, Covel and Malcolm Pryor's books I've been trying to find good charting sites which use the ADX indicator which can also alert for stocks, e.g. select all S&P500 stocks with an ADX >=30.
> I want to try some of the strategies in these books using simulators before taking the plunge with real cash. I wanted to wait before signing up to a monthly subscription, at least until I've actually started betting.
> While I'm at it, where would you find a back testing feature for new strategies?
> Can anyone help?



You will lose all your money with that approach. Trust me, I do this stuff for a living. Reading a couple of books like this and thinking you can make money on the markets is a bit like reading a golf book and thinking you could then earn a living beating other gold pro's.


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## Joe Hill (8 Feb 2009)

lemur said:


> You will lose all your money with that approach. Trust me, I do this stuff for a living. Reading a couple of books like this and thinking you can make money on the markets is a bit like reading a golf book and thinking you could then earn a living beating other gold pro's.


 
I couldn't agree with you more lemur. I'm staggered that people think that if they read a few books or attend a weekend course they will be able to "play the markets" and make money. Why not get a few more books and have a stab at open heart surgery or particle physics while you're at it!


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## limerick123 (9 Feb 2009)

did u not train yourself lemur on the art of spread betting  / trading?


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## car (9 Feb 2009)

> I couldn't agree with you more lemur. I'm staggered that people think that if they read a few books or attend a weekend course they will be able to "play the markets" and make money. Why not get a few more books and have a stab at open heart surgery or particle physics while you're at it!



How did experts at open heart surgery get to be experts? study, practice and experience, no?  
Is it not the same thing with spreadbetting or is that harder? acknowledging, of course, that some patients die on the operating table no matter how good the heart surgeon.


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## limerick123 (9 Feb 2009)

i would agree with car. obviously you cant just read books and away you go. but cutting your losses quick which is the golden rule of trading IS something that can be trained


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## Lillywhites (1 May 2009)

I'd agree with Car and Limerick123, I started trading a while back and have read a fair few books (including Shipmans), you get some useful tips and things to look out for in them all but there is no substitute for experience.
Knowing when to cut your loses and run is key, hanging in there in the hope that a trade will turn around in your favour is clutching at straws really.

Speaking of golden rules, found this article the other week which is quiet good:
[broken link removed]
Alot of the usual stuff in there but not bad.


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## spursfan1234 (1 Jun 2009)

stupid comment from woemseof.


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## Anfear (14 Nov 2009)

I'm just wondering - might there be any parallel between why bookies are taxed & why gamblers are not; and why spread-betting companies are taxed & why spread-betters are not?? Personally, I think Revenue have long figured out who the clever guys making the money are!!

Never ceases to amaze me how some individuals who might be handy with an excel spreadsheet & have a Eur20 book or two reckon they are better equipped to make speculative gains (gambling) than institutions with thousands of very bright sparks, huge up-to-the-second databases and Cray supercomputers!! Am I the dunce here??


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