What it means
A pin bar (Pinocchio bar) is a candle with one long wick, the "nose", of at least two thirds of the total range, and a small body at the opposite end. A bullish pin bar has a long lower wick; a bearish one a long upper wick.
Hammers and shooting stars are pin bars with a context name.
Why traders use it
The nose shows price tried a level and was strongly rejected. At support, resistance or after a sweep, that rejection is meaningful; in the middle of nowhere it is not.
Chart examples
Bullish pin bar at support
A pin bar that fails
How to identify it objectively
- 1Nose ≥ 2/3 of the candle's range.
- 2Body in the remaining third, at the opposite end.
- 3The nose should poke beyond a level or the surrounding candles.
- 4Enter only after the pin bar closes.
Bullish use
- 1Pin bar's nose pokes below support and closes back above.
- 2Enter on a break of the pin bar's high.
- 3Stop below the nose.
Bearish use
- 1Nose pokes above resistance and closes back below.
- 2Enter on a break of the pin bar's low.
- 3Stop above the nose.
What confirms it
- Location at a level.
- A break of the pin bar's body side.
What invalidates it
- A close beyond the nose.
- Price breaks the level the pin bar rejected.
How a hypothetical setup is built
Entry
On a break of the pin bar's high (bullish).
Stop
Below the nose.
Target
The next level, keeping at least 2R.
A hypothetical illustration of how the concept is turned into a plan, not a recommendation. Practise it on a paper account first.
Related concepts
- Candlestick PatternsHammer and Hanging Man
- LiquidityLiquidity Sweep, Stop Hunt and Run
- Candlestick PatternsShooting Star and Inverted Hammer
Historical testing
Not tested on The Tradeskill. The second diagram shows a failure case: test both outcomes, not only the clean ones.
Limitations: when it fails
- Long noses mean wide stops.
- Pin bars against a strong trend often fail.
- A pin bar is a single candle: it says nothing about the next one.
Knowledge check
Pick an answer to see the explanation. Nothing is saved.