Ross Cameron - Warrior Trading - How to Day Trade using Trade Station (Platform Demo & Honest Review)
The video offers a comprehensive walkthrough of TradeStation's desktop trading software, focusing on its suitability for active traders. The presenter, Ross Cameron, shares his experience in setting up the platform, including customizing layouts, linking windows, and configuring market data. He emphasizes the importance of using reliable software for trading and compares TradeStation's execution speed and features with other brokers like LightSpeed, Charles Schwab, and Fidelity. TradeStation is praised for its fast execution speed and the option for direct access routing, although it lacks some advanced features like selling based on position percentage and displaying halt levels. The presenter rates TradeStation a 6.5 out of 10, noting it as a solid choice for small to medium-sized accounts but not ideal for larger accounts due to potential execution speed issues with large orders. He also provides a downloadable PDF with his trading strategy insights, including risk management and stock selection criteria.
Key Points:
- TradeStation offers fast execution speed and direct access routing, making it suitable for active traders.
- The platform allows extensive customization of layouts and settings, enhancing user experience.
- TradeStation lacks advanced features like selling based on position percentage and displaying halt levels, which are available in other platforms.
- The presenter rates TradeStation 6.5 out of 10, recommending it for small to medium-sized accounts.
- A downloadable PDF is available, providing insights into the presenter's trading strategy, including risk management and stock selection.
Details:
1. 📈 Intro to Day Trading with Trade Station
- The episode provides a step-by-step guide on creating a personal layout on Trade Station, which is crucial for traders who want to optimize their workspace for better performance.
- It includes instructions on adjusting the visual appearance of windows to enhance user experience, such as resizing, moving, and docking different panels to suit individual preferences.
- The demo details changing settings to suit individual trading needs, potentially improving trading efficiency. For instance, customizing chart settings and indicators can lead to quicker decision-making during trades.
- Additional tips include using personalized hotkeys and shortcuts to execute trades faster, which is critical in the fast-paced environment of day trading.
- The importance of continuously updating and tweaking the layout based on trading performance is emphasized, ensuring the platform remains aligned with evolving trading strategies.
2. 🛠️ Customizing Trade Station for Optimal Use
2.1. Optimizing Trade Station for Day Trading
2.2. Comparative Evaluation and Suitability Assessment
3. 🏅 Ross Cameron's Trading Journey
- Ross Cameron funded his first trading account in 2001, marking over 20 years of experience.
- In 2017, Ross started a small account challenge with less than $600.
- Ross successfully grew this account to over $10 million in verified and independently audited trading profits.
- Ross emphasizes that these results should not be seen as typical, but rather as an example of what is possible.
4. 🔍 Overview of Trade Station's Reliability
- Trade Station is a platform with a long-standing presence in the trading market, indicating its reliability and trustworthiness.
- Using high-quality, reliable trading software like Trade Station helps avoid unnecessary difficulties and challenges in trading.
- Trade Station's reputation as a high-quality software provider is crucial for traders looking to prevent issues associated with poor-performing, low-quality platforms.
5. 🖥️ Exploring Desktop Trading Software
- The electronic trading software introduced in 1991 is primarily designed for active and institutional traders, distinguishing it from casual retail trading platforms.
- TradeStation offers a comprehensive range of platform options, including desktop, web, and mobile versions, with the desktop platform highlighted for its advanced features tailored to professional traders.
- Key features of the desktop platform include advanced charting tools, customizable interfaces, and access to extensive market data, making it suitable for high-frequency and algorithmic trading.
- The desktop software is part of TradeStation's complete suite available on TradeStation.com, which also includes educational resources and support for various trading strategies.
- Compared to other platforms, TradeStation's desktop software is noted for its robust analytical tools and integration capabilities, setting it apart as a preferred choice for serious traders.
6. 📊 Market Data Access and Initial Challenges
6.1. Access to Trade Station's Trading Software
6.2. Initial Challenges with Market Data Access
7. 💵 Fees, Account Management, and Broker Comparison
- Subscribing to level two Market data involves a monthly fee of approximately $11, which is a consideration for traders looking to access deeper market insights.
- Managing software and data subscriptions can be efficiently handled through the profile dashboard, allowing traders to keep track of their expenses effectively.
- The process of adding level two Market data is not intuitive, highlighting an area for improvement; a more user-friendly approach such as a direct button for adding data could enhance the user experience.
- TradeStation is compared with other platforms like LightSpeed trading, emphasizing differences in user interface and experience; LightSpeed is noted for its speed and simplicity, while TradeStation offers more comprehensive tools that may appeal to advanced traders.
8. ⚖️ Comparing Trading Platforms and Software
8.1. Platform Features and Setup
8.2. Historical Context of Trading Costs
9. 🔄 Order Execution, Responsiveness, and Visual Preferences
- Day traders engaging in high-frequency trades face significant fees, potentially reaching $200 per day or $50,000 annually, primarily due to broker fees.
- Discount brokers like Trade Station offer lower fees, but they may not provide the sophisticated software available on more expensive platforms.
- To save costs and improve functionality, many traders opt for third-party platforms for charting and stock scanning.
- Platforms like Day Trade Dash are popular for their charting, scanning, and community integration, reducing dependency on broker-provided software.
- Trading platforms such as Das Trader and Interactive Brokers offer similar features, including level two windows, time and sales, and order entry windows, which are essential for effective trading.
- Commission-free brokers often sell order flow to institutional traders, which can impact trade execution quality and pricing, highlighting a trade-off between cost savings and execution quality.
10. 💰 Commission-Free vs. Fee-Based Brokers
- Trade station reported $10.6 million in price improvement in Q3 2024, highlighting its effective order execution strategy.
- Trade station's average order execution speed is 0.44 seconds, making it one of the fastest commission-free brokers, second only to Fidelity.
- Although Fidelity has a faster execution speed, its trading software is rated poorly, being only slightly better than Robin Hood.
- Trade station's execution speed and order processing were demonstrated with a test order, showing near-instantaneous execution for both buying and selling shares.
- Execution speed is crucial for traders looking to capitalize on market movements, making Trade station's efficiency a significant advantage.
- Commission-free brokers like Trade station often attract traders who prioritize low-cost trading and efficient execution.
- The poor software experience at Fidelity despite its speed advantage suggests that traders may prefer brokers offering a balance between execution speed and user-friendly interfaces.
- Traders should consider both price improvement and software quality when choosing a broker, as these factors profoundly impact trading efficiency and user experience.
11. 🎨 Personalizing Trade Station's Visuals and Layout
11.1. Comparison of Platform Speed
11.2. Customizing Trade Station's Layout
12. 🔧 Optimizing Windows and Settings
12.1. Linking Windows for Real-Time Updates
12.2. Symbol Switching Limitations
12.3. Customizing Market Depth Appearance
12.4. Copying Customized Window Settings
12.5. Changing Fonts in Windows
13. 🔑 Setting Up and Using Hotkeys
13.1. Adjusting Settings
13.2. Configuring Display
13.3. Order Entry and Routing
13.4. Day Trading Strategy Resources
14. 📈 Managing Time and Sales Features
- Trades resume exactly 5 minutes after a circuit breaker halt, making it crucial to track the precise time of the last quote to the second, ensuring timely decision-making and strategy adjustments.
- Customizable color coding for orders (above ask, at ask, at bid, below bid) aids in quick visual identification of trade positions, enhancing traders' ability to make swift and informed decisions.
- A significant number of orders are executed between the spread, indicating a slightly bearish sentiment compared to orders executed at the extremes, which are marked by bright green or red colors.
- A practical example with Ford demonstrates a smart routed order filled at 925 with a spread of 25 by 26, suggesting that subsequent sales will likely occur slightly within the spread, informing traders about potential price movements and helping in strategy formulation.
15. 📊 Trade Management and Position Tracking
- Orders placed between the spread are highlighted differently for easy identification, enhancing quick decision-making.
- The chart interface lacks intuitive zoom and navigation controls, requiring users to manually adjust window sizes to view details properly, suggesting a need for user interface improvements.
- Users can customize the positions window by adding or removing columns, allowing them to tailor the view according to their trading strategies, thereby improving usability and efficiency.
- Key metrics such as symbol, position size, average price, open profit and loss (P&L), and closed P&L are displayed in the positions window, providing a comprehensive overview of trading performance and facilitating informed decision-making.
16. ⚙️ Creating Custom Hotkeys and Addressing Limitations
16.1. System Limitations
16.2. Creating Custom Hotkeys
17. 🔄 Testing Large Orders and Execution Speed
17.1. Order Customization Limitations
17.2. Market Data Limitations
17.3. Order Execution Speed
18. 🏆 Final Evaluation of Trade Station
- Trade Station received a score of 5.5, suitable for real-money trading due to its fast order execution and commission-free trading.
- Direct access routing available but not as fast as Light Speed; lacks selling based on positions.
- Weeble and Charles Schwab with D Trader preferred for software and user experience over Trade Station.
- For a score improvement to 7.5, Trade Station could add features like selling based on percentage and halt levels.
- Price improvement noted as a positive, raising the score to 6.5.
- Trade Station preferred over Think or Swim, E Trade, and Interactive Brokers.
19. 📝 Pros, Cons, and Platform Insights
19.1. Leverage and Trading Rules
19.2. Accessibility and Account Options
19.3. Trading Hours and Market Access
19.4. Platform Features and Costs
20. 📢 Final Thoughts and Viewer Engagement
- TradeStation is a suitable platform for trading real money, especially with small to medium-sized accounts.
- Users with larger accounts might experience slower execution speeds, which could impact trading efficiency.
- The platform is highly recommended overall, but users are encouraged to share their experiences and requests for other platform demos in the comments.
- Engagement is encouraged through comments for feedback and suggestions, and additional content is offered through linked episodes.