What You Will Learn in This Guide
The ICT Silver Bullet is a time-restricted trading model that looks for setups only inside a one-hour window (about 3-4 AM, 10-11 AM or 2-3 PM New York time). A trade qualifies only if a liquidity target was set beforehand, a market structure shift occurs inside the window, the displacement leaves a Fair Value Gap, and price retraces into that gap for the entry. Many days produce no valid setup, and skipping them is a normal outcome.
Level: Advanced | Time: about 8 minutes | Cost: free to read online or download as a PDF
- Explain the Silver Bullet model and why it restricts trading to a one-hour window
- Identify the three windows (London, AM New York and PM New York) and convert New York time to your local time
- Set a liquidity draw before the window opens instead of finding it afterwards
- Confirm a genuine market structure shift and locate the Fair Value Gap left by the displacement
- Plan the entry, stop-loss and target, and recognise the days when the setup does not qualify
What Is the Silver Bullet Strategy?
The Silver Bullet is a time-restricted ICT trading model. Rather than scanning the entire trading day for setups, it deliberately narrows the search to a specific one-hour window, and only takes a trade if a defined sequence of conditions — a structure shift, a Fair Value Gap, and a clean entry — all occurs inside that window.
The restriction to one hour is the point, not a limitation — it forces discipline by removing the temptation to force a trade outside the window simply because a chart "looks interesting."
How to Actually Use the Silver Bullet Model (Before You Trade It)
The most common mistake with the Silver Bullet strategy is treating the time window itself as the signal — assuming a trade should happen simply because the clock has entered the window. The window only defines when to look, not a guarantee that a valid setup will appear.
Before considering any Silver Bullet trade, run it through three quick filters: Is a liquidity draw already identified? — the model works best with a clear target already in mind before the window opens. Did every required condition actually occur? — skipping the structure shift or the Fair Value Gap step turns this into a different, lower-quality setup. Is the wider context supportive? — a Silver Bullet trade taken against a strong, opposing higher-timeframe trend still carries the same risks discussed elsewhere in this series.
The Three Silver Bullet Time Windows
| Window | New York Time | Session Context |
|---|---|---|
| London Silver Bullet | ~3:00 AM – 4:00 AM | Early London session |
| AM New York Silver Bullet | ~10:00 AM – 11:00 AM | Mid-morning New York session |
| PM New York Silver Bullet | ~2:00 PM – 3:00 PM | Afternoon New York session |
These times are given in New York time and need converting to a trader's local time zone, keeping daylight saving shifts in mind — the equivalent IST hours will change across the year.
Step 1: Identify a Liquidity Draw
Before the window even opens, the first step is identifying an obvious liquidity level nearby — an old high, an old low, or another clear reference point price appears likely to move toward. This gives the model a defined target before any trade is even considered.
Without an identified draw in mind beforehand, it becomes far too easy to retroactively justify almost any move that happens inside the window as valid — the target needs to be set first, not found afterward.
Step 2: Wait for a Market Structure Shift
Inside the window, the model requires a genuine market structure shift — a close beyond a recent swing point against the immediately preceding short-term trend, exactly as covered in the earlier structure guides in this series. If no such shift occurs during the hour, the model does not call for a trade that session.
This is the step most often skipped or forced by impatient traders — reacting to any price movement inside the window rather than waiting for a genuine, confirmed structural shift.
Step 3: Locate the FVG Left by Displacement
The move that caused the structure shift needs to be a genuine displacement — sharp and forceful enough to leave a Fair Value Gap behind it. That gap becomes the zone the model watches for the entry, using the same fill and Consequent Encroachment ideas covered in the dedicated FVG guide in this series.
A structure shift caused by a slow, grinding move rather than genuine displacement generally won't leave a usable gap, and the setup doesn't qualify under the model's standard conditions.
Step 4: Entry, Stop-Loss and Target
Once the structure shift and Fair Value Gap are both confirmed, entry is timed on price retracing back into that gap. A stop-loss sits just beyond the far edge of the gap, and the target is the liquidity draw identified back in Step 1 — completing the loop from the original plan to the final exit.
The trade's entire logic runs from a target set before the window opened, through a structure shift and a gap confirmed inside the window, to an entry executed on the retracement — each earlier step feeds directly into this final one.
When the Silver Bullet Setup Fails to Qualify
Many days, the window will simply pass with sideways, indecisive price action and no genuine structure shift — and on those days, the model calls for no trade at all. Skipping a session is a normal, expected outcome of the strategy, not a sign that something has gone wrong.
Treating "no trade today" as an acceptable, frequent result is part of what keeps the model's required conditions meaningful — a setup taken on every single window, qualifying or not, isn't really the Silver Bullet model anymore.
Common Silver Bullet Mistakes to Avoid
Forcing a trade just because the window is open
The time window defines when to look, not a guarantee a valid setup will appear inside it — most windows on most days won't qualify.
Skipping the liquidity draw step
Entering without a target already identified beforehand makes it too easy to justify the trade after the fact rather than plan it in advance.
Accepting a weak structure shift
A shift against a very minor, insignificant swing point isn't the same as a genuine, meaningful market structure shift.
Ignoring time zone conversions
Applying the New York-based window times directly without converting them correctly to local time, including daylight saving adjustments, misses the actual window entirely.
Trading against a strong opposing trend
A qualifying Silver Bullet setup taken directly against a powerful higher-timeframe trend still carries the same risks any countertrend trade does.
Chasing price after missing the retracement
Entering late, after price has already moved well past the Fair Value Gap, gives up the tight, defined risk the model is built around.
Your Silver Bullet Confirmation Checklist
Before entering any Silver Bullet trade in this guide, run through this five-point check:
Correct Time Window
Have you correctly converted the window's New York time to your own local time zone for today's date?
Liquidity Draw Set First
Was the target level identified before the window opened, rather than picked afterward?
Genuine MSS Inside the Window
Did a real, meaningful structure shift actually occur inside the hour, not just minor noise?
Usable FVG Present
Did the displacement leave a clear Fair Value Gap to time the entry against?
Defined Risk
Do you know exactly where you'd be proven wrong, and have you placed a stop-loss there before entering?
Practice Exercises: Apply It on Real Charts and Chains
Reading a concept is not the same as spotting it live. Work through these on the Nifty option chain, and treat the results as practice, not proof. No real orders needed.
Convert the windows to IST
Work out the three Silver Bullet windows in Indian Standard Time for today's date, allowing for New York daylight saving. Write them down.
Set the draw first
Before one window opens, mark the nearest old high or old low as the liquidity draw and write it down. Only then watch the window.
Review ten past windows
Using chart replay on one instrument, review ten past windows. Count how many had a genuine structure shift and a usable Fair Value Gap, and how many did not qualify.
Plan one trade on paper
For a window that qualified, mark the gap, the entry on the retracement, the stop beyond the far edge of the gap and the target at the draw. Calculate the reward-to-risk and do not place the trade.
About the Author and the Trading Course in Boisar, Dahanu, Palghar & Online
This guide is written by Deepak Kevadia, founder and mentor of Chart Code and BSE NISM certified. Chart Code is a stock market training institute at 208, Yash Padma Arcade, Boisar Tarapur Road, Boisar, Palghar, Maharashtra. Learners from Boisar, Dahanu, Palghar and nearby towns can attend classroom batches in Boisar, and learners anywhere in India can join live online.
Classroom trading course in Boisar
Structured, hands-on batches at the Boisar institute, open to learners from Dahanu, Palghar and nearby areas.
Live online trading course
The same structured learning from anywhere in India, with a mentor you can question.
Free webinar and free PDF library
Try the teaching style before you enrol, and keep studying with free guides.
Questions about batches? Use the query form or call +91 95121 00588.
This guide explains a time-based trading framework and is not investment advice or a recommendation to trade any instrument. No setup works every day, and the Silver Bullet model can lose money. Trading carries a high risk of loss, so always define your stop-loss before entering.