How to Make Profits In Commodities (ISBN 9650060146)

WD Gann Adds Volumes to the Commodity Trading World:
WD Gann wrote this updated version of the book in 1951. Yes, 1951. His methodologies and style, as well as his world view, are so....well 1950's. However, what he provides to those of us who want to be successful in trading commodites is a broad set of 'do's and dont's' that you can find in nearly every trading book written today. You know, "stop loss orders", "dont over trade", "never risk more than X%" of your capital on a given trade, "let your winning trade's ride", "get out of a bad trade immediately", "when in doubt, there is no doubt".... We have read them all before. NONE of this is of any real value to the modern trader. However, what is of value, is getting a recognition of the painstaking historical analysis that WD Gann went through BEFORE he traded any commodities. This book includes several 100 year analyses of all the traded commodities of his time. The analyses include what happened in the "month of September in 1897" in cotton. And then that is followed by the next relevant technical occurance, which happened in October of 1897. He does this for many of the commodites of the time from 1841 to 1941. What the reader comes away with in my opinion, is that commodities are cyclical in nature. And that if you can holistically 'feel' the history and the motion of the cycles that exist in each commodity, you can trade more effectively. This includes understanding the 'how we got here' and the relevant bigger picture points that one can glean from looking at the historical data on a specific commodity. For example, that in the last 100 years (1841-1941), (I am making this up) Corn has reached a new yearly high in the month of June 22 times, and a new low in August 36 times. Whereas, new highs were reached in February only 2 times, and new lows reached in December 2 times. This information is valuable to a trader who knows what to do with this type of information. In my view, dont look to this book for more information on "how to trade" as much as you should look at 'what to do' to improve your chances of success. One last note, if you are looking to get some background or academic knowledge on how GANN lines are used, or GANN Boxes or any of the other GANN ascribed technical tools used or invented by GANN, this book DOES NOT show, teach or discuss any of them.

Very good:
I like this book. It does not promise "90% accurate signals" or treat reader with condescension. It teaches three things: 1) "swing trading" methods, 2) how to pay attention, 3) never forget stop loss orders. The book itself is structured in three large parts: 1) W.D. Gann's approach to markets and trader's discipline, 2) examples of trading patterns from various commodities all the way from 19th century, 3) addendum from 1951 with some more details and clarifications. Some people complain that Gann's writing style is too monotonous and droning. It is true in the sense that he does not entertain. But he does cover more ground than all those easy-reading "Trading for Dummies" book which are typeset in triple space with large charts. Parts of this book and interpretations of Gann's methods are available on the web - but it is still nice to have it as a book.

This is the one !!!:
If i could keep just one of my gann books this one would be it , it is packed full of ideas even a non gann follower could benifit from this book.

This book inspired me to seek more knowledge:
Pattern, Price & Time: Using Gann Theory in Technical Analysis (Wiley Trading) Pattern, Price & Time: Using Gann Theory in Trading Systems (Wiley Trading) This was the first Gann book that I read. I found it to be very inspirational. Reading it encourage me to seek more knowledge about the markets. The first 2 chapters are the best. The rest of the book is material copied from the Chicago Board of Trade Yearbooks except for the swing data. Most of the trades suggested in the book are hypothetical. He even says so in the book. Nonetheless I recommend it just for the trading rules scattered all over the book. James A. Hyerczyk (...)

Gann, the Trader at his best.:
Traders tend to confuse 'Gann, the Trader', with 'Gann, the Forecaster'. Gann, the Trader, was straight forward and logical. Problem starts when traders attempt to trade the forecast with Gann's numerous predictive methods and, vice versa, forecast the trade with Gann's trading method. Gann really does not deserve all the unfounded criticisms. Although there are doubts as to the claims that Gann was the originator of swing chart trading method, Gann, at least, refined and definitized the swing chart trading concept. No one can question the sound trading principles behind the method since there is a clear and convincing proof by none other than Jesse Livermore who achieved the spectacular trading accomplishments by using a variation of swing chart trading method. What Gann tried to do was to add his own brand of forecasting methods to complement his trading operation. There is certainly nothing wrong with the exercise as long as one does not confuse either objective with the other. To be a good trader, one does not need to be a forecaster. In fact, it is not recommended if the trader is a terrible forecaster for his prediction may be detrimental to his trading. However, to truly become an excellent trader, it does not hurt to be a good forecaster as well. The decision on whether or not the chosen forecasting algorithm should be based on Gann is another matter.