burrocrat's Account Talk

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burrocrat said:
A while back I got tired of blaming my poor investment performance on the two IFT limit so I went looking for ways I could utilize the TSP framework to advantage.

There is a good thread around here somewhere called the <1% something or other. Squalebear invented it I think. They can explain it way better than me but here is how I use it.

When I am moving most or all my chips in on my 2nd IFT of the month, I consider putting 1% each in the 2030, 2040, and 2050 funds. If I think my most recent move in is likely to be a quick turn and/or leave lots of days left in the month, then I almost always do the <1% thing.

That way I can get most of my chips out if needed (hopefully at a couple percent gain) and still be able to get some back in if I'm wrong and the market goes and does what Birchtree wants it to.

Every other day you can rebalance any fund you have anything in up/down to an even x.00 percent. If you want to get back into equities but are out of trades and locked then you have no one to blame but yourself. If you had left at least 1% each in C, S, I, and the 3 lifecycle funds which have an equity component, then you have some options left.

If there are 10 trading days left in the month then 5 times you could move ~5% for a total of 25% back in the game before you officially get to reload. That is the practical best case scenario for the method in my opinion, usually you won't have that many days or a couple of funds end up at x.00 so you can't fiddle with them or most likely may not even want back in.

But it beats having no options and sitting around crying about it.
Click to expand...

Eggsellent explaination. Thanks !!
 
How do you respond to this?

Random conversation with a 2nd grader while fixing supper...

Mrs. ----- isn't feeling well.

Oh, why's that?

She's been gone for 3 days since last week. She is tired of us. She might be on vacation though, I think she's faking it.

(I'm thinking I get tired of it too, where do you learn this stuff?)

And the substitute mixed up justice and liberty.

What?

Justice is fairness. Liberty is freedom.

? Holy sh** ?... What am I supposed to say?
 
burrocrat said:
A while back I got tired of blaming my poor investment performance on the two IFT limit so I went looking for ways I could utilize the TSP framework to advantage.

There is a good thread around here somewhere called the <1% something or other. Squalebear invented it I think. They can explain it way better than me but here is how I use it.

When I am moving most or all my chips in on my 2nd IFT of the month, I consider putting 1% each in the 2030, 2040, and 2050 funds. If I think my most recent move in is likely to be a quick turn and/or leave lots of days left in the month, then I almost always do the <1% thing.

That way I can get most of my chips out if needed (hopefully at a couple percent gain) and still be able to get some back in if I'm wrong and the market goes and does what Birchtree wants it to.

Every other day you can rebalance any fund you have anything in up/down to an even x.00 percent. If you want to get back into equities but are out of trades and locked then you have no one to blame but yourself. If you had left at least 1% each in C, S, I, and the 3 lifecycle funds which have an equity component, then you have some options left.

If there are 10 trading days left in the month then 5 times you could move ~5% for a total of 25% back in the game before you officially get to reload. That is the practical best case scenario for the method in my opinion, usually you won't have that many days or a couple of funds end up at x.00 so you can't fiddle with them or most likely may not even want back in.

But it beats having no options and sitting around crying about it.
Click to expand...

What's with all the correct capitalizations of proper nouns and chit?




Alright, who are you and what did you do with Burro?:suspicious:
 
Buster said:
What's with all the correct capitalizations of proper nouns and chit?




Alright, who are you and what did you do with Burro?:suspicious:
Click to expand...

same old *** i've always been.

I just got tired of all that humanitarian bullcrap and decided it was time to make some money.

P.S. (and i'm trying not to say this anymore) but I got your donkey right here, sir.
 
Awww, how cute. It just pulled itself out of the muck and grew some legs right before our eyes.

What have we got here, a little baby bull?
 
burrocrat said:
How do you respond to this?

Random conversation with a 2nd grader while fixing supper...

Mrs. ----- isn't feeling well.

Oh, why's that?

She's been gone for 3 days since last week. She is tired of us. She might be on vacation though, I think she's faking it.

(I'm thinking I get tired of it too, where do you learn this stuff?)

And the substitute mixed up justice and liberty.

What?

Justice is fairness. Liberty is freedom.

? Holy sh** ?... What am I supposed to say?
Click to expand...

You are supposed to say, "That was an astute observation and it makes me very happy that you understand the difference!" Or words to that effect. Which I'm sure is what you said. Because I know you. And you are an eggcellent dad.
 
Steel_Magnolia said:
You are supposed to say, "That was an astute observation and it makes me very happy that you understand the difference!" Or words to that effect. Which I'm sure is what you said. Because I know you. And you are an eggcellent dad.
Click to expand...

Well, I just went with the first thing that popped into my head.

That's right kid.

But I added a head nod, does that count?
 
burrocrat said:
Well, I just went with the first thing that popped into my head.

That's right kid.

But I added a head nod, does that count?
Click to expand...
Yep, because he knows what that head nod meant.

And, by the way, I really like your signature. Because after all, that's what it's about, isn't it.
 
Well, since I'm mostly a 'gut feel' kind of trader, I've been trying to reduce the volatility in my TSP returns this year. Some of the strategies I'm trying, with varying levels of success:

Don't pull the trigger the first day I want to get in or out, works about half the time, I think it has saved me more in avoided losses than missed gains.

Don't move 100% in when it's time to buy, stagger it 25-75% and save some ammo if direction confirms or else limit losses. I think it has helped some. Won't ever be a superstar on the tracker that way but maybe be a more consistent winner over time.

Don't put it all in one fund, spread the risk, and sacrifice some gains. Same drawbacks as above.

Other than that, I pay attention to the wealth of knowledge here and try to make some sense of it. But I can't study charts the technical way, it is an unpleasant and frustrating task to me. So I look at them like one of those 3D pictures where you got to devine the message/image. Never was very good at that either.

But mostly I try to absorb a lot of news/current events from multiple sources to get a feel for the state of things.

Then I try to hit it when I think it's hot.

Anybody else use strategies like that? Suggestions?
 
New Allocation: 50G, 0F, 30C, 7S, 10I, 1-2050, 1-2040, 1-2030.

Let's see a booming market that holds the close today so I can get some profits off the table.
 
New Allocation: 80G, 0F, 10C, 2S, I5, 2050-1, 2040-1, 2030-1

Yippee, looks like it might be two days in a row for the free money. I'm taking some more out.

80 out, 20 in, that's like 4 to 1, and I got a 4 day weekend coming up, I love it when a plan comes together, no worries.

(I just had to go and tempt fate there)

Happy Holiday, out.
 
Oh yeah, +6.11% and feeling fine.

Until I looked myself up on the tracker, sitting at #205 just under L2040 at #204. C'mon what kind of name is that?

You mean a stupid lifecycle fund can do better than me? And I even own shares in it, how's that for gratitude.

That's it, on Monday I'm liquidating my entire holdings of L2040 and it's on it's own.
 
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