Trailing stops in MQL5: how to lock in profit without choking your winners
I once had a long on GBPJPY that was up about 70 pips. Nice trade. I'd bolted on a trailing stop the night before, set it to follow 12 pips behind price, and went to bed feeling clever. By morning the position was closed for a 9-pip gain, and the pair had run another 180 pips in my direction without me. The trailing stop did exactly what I told it to: it strangled the trade on the first pullback. That's the whole problem with trailing stops in one story - set them too tight and they turn your best trades…