Rules for a flat (these are “hard” rules; they cannot be broken)
- A flat always subdivides into three waves.
- Wave A is never a triangle.
- Wave C is always in five waves or a diagonal triangle.
- Wave B always retraces at least 90 percent of wave A.
Guidelines (guidelines can be broken but it’s rare that they are)
- When wave B is more than 105 percent as long as wave A and wave C ends beyond the end of wave A the entire formation is called an expanded flat.
Notes
- When wave B is more than 100 percent as long as wave A and wave C does not end beyond the end of wave A. the entire formation is called a running flat.