# What Scalpel is for, and what it is not

> Scalpel is opinionated: long-only scalping of US stocks, pre-market first, by keyboard and sound. What it does, what it never will, and who it is for.

Source: https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/scalpel-philosophy
Guide 1.9, Getting started. Beginner, 7 min read.
Checked with Scalpel 1.12.8 on 2026-10-15. By Scalpel Team.

**In short:**

Scalpel is opinionated software. It does one job: long-only scalping of US stocks, built first for the pre-market (04:00 to 09:30 New York time), driven by keyboard and sound, on the data you already get from Interactive Brokers. It does not short, and it does not trade futures, options or crypto or place trades for you, and it almost certainly never will. If you want those, TWS or another platform will serve you better.

Most trading platforms try to do everything. Scalpel does not, on purpose. Every screen, key and default is shaped around one style of trading: fast small-cap momentum, in for seconds or minutes, out with a stop already set. This page explains what that style is, what Scalpel leaves out and why, where the ideas come from, and whether it is the right tool for you.

## What Scalpel is for

| | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| **US stocks, long only** | Buy, scale out, get out. Every sell is capped to the shares you hold, so a mistyped key can never put you short ([guide 7.3](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/long-only)) |
| **Momentum scalping** | Small caps that are moving now, on news and heavy volume. Not investing, not swing trading |
| **The pre-market first** | Built for 04:00 to 09:30 ET, when gappers make many of their biggest moves and ordinary tools struggle. It works in regular hours and after hours too |
| **Keyboard and sound** | Every action has a key, every fill and exit is spoken, and the tape can be heard, so your eyes stay on the book |

*Screenshot: One desk at 07:41 ET: the desk header reads PRE (1) for the pre-market, the chart carries the open position with its stop and target (2), and every button on the order bar has a key (3). Demo data.*

The pre-market focus runs through the whole app. The scanner includes pre-market movers from 04:00 ([guide 8.3](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/premarket-scanning)). The chart's VWAP starts at 04:00 ET, not at the open ([guide 3.5](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/chart-basics)). Orders are open from 04:00 to 20:00 ET. And the stops live in the app, because before the open a stop order at your broker cannot protect you ([guide 5.5](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/premarket-stops)).

## What it will not do, and why

Scalpel does not support shorting, futures, options, crypto or automated trading, and we do not plan to add them. Each one would pull the app away from the job it does well.

- **No shorting.** Long-only is a design choice, not a missing feature. Every sell is checked against the shares you hold and capped to them, in SIM and LIVE, so a double-tapped exit or a stop firing during a manual sell can never flip you short. Shorting small caps also brings borrow fees, locates and squeezes, a different trade altogether.
- **No futures, options or crypto.** They need different data, margin rules, sizing and order types. A cockpit tuned for small-cap stocks would be a worse tool for all of them.
- **No automation.** There is no auto trader. Every order is a key you pressed or a stop you set. The only orders Scalpel sends on its own are the exits for the levels you armed, and Flatten All if you turn on auto-flatten at your daily loss limit.

*Screenshot: Long only in practice: with no position the sell buttons are grey, and a sell key is refused with No long position to sell. Demo data.*

If you need any of these, keep TWS or another platform for them. Scalpel can run alongside TWS on the same account.

## Where the style comes from

Scalpel stands on ideas many traders already know. Scalpel is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Ross Cameron, Warrior Trading, DAS or Aggr.trade.

- **Small-cap momentum, as Ross Cameron teaches it at Warrior Trading.** Pre-market gappers with fresh news, low float and heavy relative volume; patterns like gap and go and the micro pullback; hotkeys, Level 2 and the tape; a small fixed risk per trade and a hard daily loss limit. [Guide 14.6](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/momentum-method) maps the method to Scalpel's scanner, intel, keys and stops.
- **A DAS-style Level 2 montage.** Bids left, asks right, one row per venue, each price level in its own colour band, the layout many momentum traders learned on DAS Trader. [Guide 3.7](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/read-the-players) shows how to read who is doing what in it.
- **Tape sound, inspired by Aggr.trade.** Every print becomes a sound: buys in your right ear, sells in your left, a block trade with its own shape, so you hear the flow speed up before you see it ([guide 3.4](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/tape-sound)).

## No extra subscriptions

A momentum setup usually means a data feed, a charting subscription and a scanner service on top of your broker. We did not want that for our traders. Scalpel runs on what you already have through Interactive Brokers, plus free public sources:

| You need | Where Scalpel gets it | Extra cost |
|---|---|---|
| Quotes, Level 2 and the tape | Your IBKR market data | None beyond what you pay IBKR, including its depth add-on for Level 2 ([guide 1.6](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/ibkr-market-data-for-day-trading)). No separate feed such as Massive.com (formerly Polygon.io) |
| Charts | IBKR's own price history, drawn with TradingView's free, open-source Lightweight Charts library | None. No TradingView subscription |
| A scanner | IBKR's own market scanner over your TWS connection ([guide 8.1](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/set-up-ibkr-scanner)) | None. No scanner service to rent |
| News | The news providers on your IBKR account | None beyond your IBKR account |
| Filings, dilution, short interest | SEC EDGAR, FINRA and Nasdaq, all free and public ([guide 9.1](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/set-up-intel)) | None |
| Sharper headline grading (optional) | Your own OpenAI key | A few cents a day, only if you add one |

## The risk, said plainly

**This can cost you money: This style of trading is hard, and risky.**

Fast small-cap momentum trading, especially in the pre-market, carries a significant risk of loss and is very difficult. Many people who try it lose money. Moves are violent in both directions, books are thin, halts happen, and an exit can fill far worse than your stop. Scalpel makes the mechanics quicker and safer; it does not make the trading easy or profitable, and it never tells you what to buy. Learn it in SIM, keep your risk per trade small, set a daily loss limit before your first LIVE order, and expect a long learning curve.

## Who it suits, and who it does not

Scalpel suits you if:

- you trade, or want to learn to trade, US small caps on the long side, in and out within minutes;
- you are up before the open, because that is when your stocks move;
- you have an Interactive Brokers account with live US market data, or will get one;
- you want keys for everything and are willing to practise in SIM until they are automatic;
- you want a stop on every trade without placing one by hand.

It is not for you if:

- you short, or trade futures, options, forex or crypto;
- you want a bot or signals that trade for you;
- you invest or swing trade over days and weeks: TWS does that well, for free;
- you want to trade with no risk of loss. No tool offers that.

## Where to go next

- [Guide 5.5](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/premarket-stops): why the stops live in the app, and what that means for your trades.
- [Guide 3.7](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/read-the-players): reading the players on the DAS-style montage.
- [Guide 14.6](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/momentum-method): the momentum method Scalpel is built around.
- [Guide 1.7](https://scalpeltrade.com/guides/first-session-in-sim): your first 15 minutes, in SIM.

## Questions

**Can I short stocks with Scalpel?**

No. Scalpel is long only by design: every sell is capped to the shares you hold, so it can never put you short. We do not plan to add shorting.

**Does Scalpel trade futures, options or crypto?**

No, only US stocks, and that is unlikely to change. Use TWS or another platform for other markets; Scalpel can run alongside TWS on the same account.

**Does Scalpel trade automatically?**

No. There is no auto trader. Every order is a key you press. The only orders it sends on its own are the exits for stops and targets you armed, and an optional flatten at your daily loss limit.

**Do I need extra data or charting subscriptions?**

No. Scalpel uses your Interactive Brokers market data, Level 2, tape, scanner and news, plus free SEC, FINRA and Nasdaq data. You still pay IBKR for the market data you use. An OpenAI key for headline grading is optional.

**Is Scalpel affiliated with Ross Cameron or Warrior Trading?**

No. Scalpel is independent and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Ross Cameron, Warrior Trading, DAS or Aggr.trade. It is inspired by the publicly known momentum style and tools many traders use.

**Does Scalpel work in regular hours?**

Yes. It is built pre-market first, but it works from 04:00 to 20:00 ET: the pre-market, regular hours and after hours.