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The Crab Pattern is a harmonic extension pattern identified by Scott Carney as the most precise harmonic pattern. Point D completes at exactly the 161.8% Fibonacci extension of XA — the deepest extension of any harmonic.
The Crab pushes price to an extreme beyond X, far past where most traders expect support or resistance. This extreme extension creates some of the sharpest reversals in harmonic trading.
Carney considers the 161.8% extension to be one of the most critical levels in Fibonacci analysis. When the internal ABCD structure aligns with this extension, the reversal zone is highly precise.
The Crab represents maximum overextension. At 161.8% of XA, price has gone far beyond the original range. Everyone who held from X has been stopped out. The market is running on pure momentum and emotion.
The 161.8% level acts as a mathematical wall. The Fibonacci extension, combined with the internal harmonic structure arriving at the same point, creates a convergence zone where the overextension snaps back.
Reversals from Crab patterns tend to be violent because the extreme extension has trapped maximum traders on the wrong side. When price finally turns, the short-covering or long-liquidation creates a sharp reversal.
Enter at 161.8% of XA with immediate reversal confirmation. Given the extreme extension, wait for a strong reversal candle — don't front-run.
Beyond 200% of XA, or a fixed distance beyond D. The stop is wider than other harmonics due to the extreme extension.
T1: Point B. T2: Point A. T3: 61.8% of XD. Reversals from Crabs tend to be large.
Can be exceptional — 1:3 to 1:5 — due to the sharp reversals from extreme extensions.
The Crab catches the most extreme reversals. It requires patience and conviction to buy at 161.8% below a prior low, but when the ratios align, the snap-back is powerful.
Crabs catch the extreme — the moment everyone says 'this will never stop going down.' The 161.8% extension is where capitulation meets mathematics.
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