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2003issue C091

Constructing wedges versus flat-boundary triangles

Triangle construction keeps one boundary-line level, while a wedge is drawn with both boundary-lines on a slant so the lines eventually meet. Editorial practice is to run that flat-boundary test first and only then apply slope and duration checks to the two-slant sketch.

  • Triangle construction keeps one boundary-line level, while a wedge is drawn with both boundary-lines on a slant.
  • A rising wedge is identified when both boundary-lines slope up, the lower line rises more steeply than the upper line, and the two lines eventually meet.
  • A falling wedge is identified when both boundary-lines slope down, the lower line falls more steeply than the upper line, and the two lines eventually meet.
  • A wedge should not be constructed as a pennant, because a pennant forms over a much shorter span.
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Current trackTriangle pattern55 readings

Keep one boundary-line level

A boundary-line is a slanted or level edge drawn along successive highs or lows that defines one side of the pattern. A triangle is a contracting price structure drawn with one level boundary-line and one slanted boundary-line.

A wedge is a contracting price structure drawn with both boundary-lines on a slant so the lines eventually meet. Triangle construction keeps one boundary-line level. That level edge is what keeps the sketch a triangle rather than a wedge.

Check rising-wedge slope and duration

A rising wedge is identified when both boundary-lines slope up, the lower line rises more steeply than the upper line, and the two lines eventually meet. A rising wedge is described as taking at least three weeks to form and lasting about three months, possibly as long as four months.

Editorial reading: apply the steeper-lower-line test and the described duration only after both boundary-lines are slanted. A sketch that fails those checks is not kept as a rising wedge.

Treat a falling wedge as consolidation

A falling wedge is identified when both boundary-lines slope down, the lower line falls more steeply than the upper line, and the two lines eventually meet. A falling wedge is treated as part of a consolidation construction. Consolidation is a pause in directional movement during which a falling wedge may be constructed.

Do not construct a wedge as a pennant

A wedge should not be constructed as a pennant, because a pennant forms over a much shorter span.

Educational research material, not investment advice. Historical source context does not establish present-day performance.
15 of 33 in the Triangle pattern track
20041-3 pp.Next on Triangle patternTesting triangle breakouts against volume filtersCompare breakout volume with that same market's own recent average. A quiet name's busy day can still be smaller than a liquid name's typical hour, so raw cross-stock volume comparisons are unusable.
All readings on this track · 33 readings
  1. 1986Gold as a double zigzag before a contracting B-wave triangle
  2. 1990Scoring competing wave counts after a crash
  3. 1992Pre-trade checklist for trendline and triangle signals
  4. 1995Chart patterns as tactics, not strategy
  5. 1996Constructing Elliott wave counts with triangles and Fibonacci
  6. 1996A price-channel case study with a pending triangle signal and a planned stop-loss
  7. 1996Expanding triangle as a dual-label fourth-wave reversal worksheet
  8. 1997Rising wedge construction, breakout, and volume
  9. 1997Confirm structure and conditions before naming a Triangle pattern
  10. 1999Drawing the Triangle pattern before Breakout confirmation and the Stop-loss order
  11. 2000Four-phase market cycle triangle breakouts
  12. 2000Continuation triangles as a three-lock experiment
  13. 2001Folding rule: stacking three trendlines on an accelerating swing
  14. 2003A scored symmetrical triangle on a utility stock
  15. 2003Constructing wedges versus flat-boundary triangles
  16. 2004Testing triangle breakouts against volume filters
  17. 2004Mute triangles, histogram force, and trader optimization
  18. 2004Constructing falsifiable reversal and continuation patterns
  19. 2004Construct a corrective rising wedge before treating it as a short
  20. 2004A continuation triangle with Fibonacci targets and an apex stop
  21. 2005Pre-breakout filters for classic chart patterns
  22. 2005Reverse trendlines as a geometry lab for convergence and expanding triangles
  23. 2005Volume shapes versus triangle and double-pattern breakouts
  24. 2005A nested-pattern checklist on the 2005 euro
  25. 2005Volume test for a descending triangle breakout
  26. 2010Constructing triangle, broadening, and head and shoulders patterns
  27. 2011Treat a numeric pattern rank as a shortlist
  28. 2011Evaluating the head-and-shoulders as a falsifiable reversal
  29. 2013Auditing chart patterns by the first post-breakout swing
  30. 2014A three-gate entry for a triangle pullback
  31. 2014Golden triangle: a 50-day pause that still needs both gates
  32. 2014The triangle qualifier came after the rating pre-screen and the fifty-day bounce
  33. 2018Aligning daily, weekly, and monthly triangles with trendlines and Fibonacci retracements
By fieldChart patterns222 readingsBy year2003104 readings
All 55 readings tagged Triangle pattern
Also on Triangle pattern5 readings
1986Gold as a double zigzag before a contracting B-wave triangle1990Scoring competing wave counts after a crash1992Pre-trade checklist for trendline and triangle signals1995Chart patterns as tactics, not strategy1996Ascending triangle and Descending triangle breakout case study