Range scalping the dead mid-session: only the middle of the box is worth nothing

[Amanhasnoname]

The mid-session lull, roughly after the European morning fades and before the US session wakes up, looks perfect for fading range edges. Price oscillates, indicators look tidy, and it feels like free money. Then a single news-free drift takes out the range and three stacked fades lose together.

What helps is qualifying the range before touching it. Look for at least two clean touches on each side, and a range height that is at least four or five times the typical spread plus commission. If the box is only eight pips tall on a pair with a one-pip round-trip cost, the edge is mostly gone before it starts.

Entries near the edge need a stop outside the range, not inside it, because stops inside get hunted by routine noise. That makes risk bigger than reward unless the target is the opposite side, so the trade only works at high hit rates. Be honest about whether that hit rate is real in your own log.

Also set a hard cutoff. When the US pre-market data window approaches, flatten and stop fading. Ranges are most fragile just before volatility returns.

How many touches does a range need before you trust it enough to fade, and has that number held up across pairs?