Where do I put the stop on a gold sweep trade?

Beyond the extreme of the sweep wick plus a buffer of at least $1.00 on XAUUSD for spread and fill variance — typically a total distance of $4 to $8. A stop level exactly at the wick will usually be taken by the next probe.

How much should I risk on a counter-trend gold trade?

Around 0.5% of equity, half of a with-trend setup, with an absolute lot cap that does not increase just because the stop is tight, and a hard stop for the day after two sweep losses.

Should I use a time stop on gold sweeps?

Yes. The thesis is an immediate reversal, so if price has made no meaningful progress within 30 to 45 minutes, the flow never arrived and closing for a small loss beats waiting for the full stop.

Risk Management for Gold Sweep Trades

Gold sweep stops sit beyond the sweep wick plus a spread buffer of at least .00 on XAUUSD, giving a typical total distance of $4 to $8; a wick deeper than about 5 indicates a breakout rather than a sweep.

Because the setup is counter-trend, risk is halved to roughly 0.5% of equity with an absolute lot cap that does not scale up as the stop tightens, plus a two-loss daily cap.

Targets are structural — mid-range then the opposite boundary — and a 30 to 45 minute time stop closes trades where the expected reversal flow never arrived.