Five trades in three sessions, net -$151.44, and more learned per dollar than anywhere else in this record. This is the full write-up of the 0DTE SPX iron condor experiment of July 15 to 17, 2026, run during a chip rout with the war re-escalating, with real stop orders behind every position.
Net, five trades
-$151.44
Two stop-outs, two expirations, one worked exit, Jul 15 to 17
Worst trade
-$188.32
Jul 16 condor: put side stopped at 4.10 against 2.35 collected
Best trade
+$128.12
Jul 15 condor sold minutes after a stop-out, expired untouched
The trades
| Trade | Entry | Exit | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jul 15 condor, 7460/7490P + 7560/7590C | 1.75 credit | Stopped at 3.50 | -$184.76 |
| Jul 15 condor, 7505/7535P + 7580/7610C | 1.35 credit | All four legs expired | +$128.12 |
| Jul 16 condor, 7490/7520P + 7595/7625C | 2.35 credit | Put side stopped 4.10, calls closed 0.05 | -$188.32 |
| Jul 16 salvage, 7495/7490 put spread | 0.30 credit | Expired | +$28.28 |
| Jul 17 condor, 7370/7400P + 7530/7560C | 1.00 credit | Closed at 0.25 | +$65.24 |
Wednesday was the brutal day: the first condor stopped out within the hour, and the response, four minutes later, was to sell another one further from the market for less credit. That second condor expired clean. Thursday’s condor collected the week’s richest credit and had its put side blown through anyway; the stop paid 4.10. Then came the week’s most alert moment: the stop had closed only the short 7520 put, leaving the long 7490 alive, so a new 7495 put was sold against it, rebuilding a tiny 5-wide spread that expired worthless and clawed back $28.28. Friday’s condor was the lesson applied in real time: strikes further out, a smaller 1.00 credit, and a calm worked exit at 0.25 instead of a ride to the close.
What happened around them
Tuition week in full: semiconductors logging their worst week in over a year, the S&P below its 50-day average, the VIX up 11% Friday, and crude spiking on renewed hostilities. The fastest loss of the record happened the same Wednesday, from the same cause.
What it taught
First, the part the trader is genuinely proud of: this was executed professionally. Every position had a real stop-limit resting behind it, every loss was a stop doing its job, and nothing in the log looks like tilt. Trying new strategies is, in the trader’s own words, something he genuinely enjoys, and the acceptance is stated just as plainly: when you go big you can win or lose.
The lessons, kept in his own terms. Set better stop losses, because 2x-credit stops in 0DTE conditions were tight enough that ordinary noise triggered them. Understand what a break-even iron condor actually is, because a credit that mostly just covers the exit isn’t the income it appears to be. Be more careful trading during war time; geopolitical stress was moving the tape all three days. Use lower deltas when the market is volatile, or simply don’t trade at all during those stretches. And the intent, stated for the record: make this money back with better discipline, not swear off the craft.