Playbook card: impulse pullback on US30
Posted: Sun Oct 04, 2026 8:23 pm
I keep a single card for each setup I trade, small enough to fit on an index card. This is the one for the US30 impulse pullback, written out in full for anyone who wants to borrow the format.
Setup: impulse pullback, US30, M1 and M5.
Window: 14:35 to 16:30 London. Not in the first five minutes after the cash open, not during US data.
Impulse: at least 120 points in under 15 minutes, with M1 candles mostly closing near their extremes.
Pullback zone: 35% to 55% retracement of the impulse.
Trigger: M1 candle closing back in the direction of the impulse, after at least three M1 candles in the pullback.
Stop: beyond the pullback extreme plus 15 points.
Target: first target the impulse extreme, second target at 1.5 times the impulse length from the pullback, trailing on M5 swing points.
Size: risk 0.4% of account. Never more on US30, because of the gap risk.
Cancel if: spread more than double normal, or a major headline in the last 15 minutes, or the impulse came straight out of a US release.
Review note: the most common mistake is entering on the first M1 candle of the pullback because it "looks" done. Three candles minimum.
That last line was added after I made the same error four times in a fortnight.
Setup: impulse pullback, US30, M1 and M5.
Window: 14:35 to 16:30 London. Not in the first five minutes after the cash open, not during US data.
Impulse: at least 120 points in under 15 minutes, with M1 candles mostly closing near their extremes.
Pullback zone: 35% to 55% retracement of the impulse.
Trigger: M1 candle closing back in the direction of the impulse, after at least three M1 candles in the pullback.
Stop: beyond the pullback extreme plus 15 points.
Target: first target the impulse extreme, second target at 1.5 times the impulse length from the pullback, trailing on M5 swing points.
Size: risk 0.4% of account. Never more on US30, because of the gap risk.
Cancel if: spread more than double normal, or a major headline in the last 15 minutes, or the impulse came straight out of a US release.
Review note: the most common mistake is entering on the first M1 candle of the pullback because it "looks" done. Three candles minimum.
That last line was added after I made the same error four times in a fortnight.