I was trading 1-4 contracts but some guys go upwards of 10 depending if they're scalping or not. Larger players / institutions can go huge - every now and then you'll see someone drop a banger on the tape and it's always interesting seeing how the instrument reacts after the majority of traders see it !
There's also a lot of dodgy stuff happening in futures, but that's a story for another day.
My experiences:
Tape reading is generally for a few ticks. The way I was trading wasn't as advanced as the pro's, hence why I moved back to FX/CFDs. I was using a chart to identify what's been going on previously and then watching the tape around key levels for stalls or reversals to gain a few ticks here and there.
Again, I wasn't the best at it and quite frankly I don't see what all the fuss is about - it's a lot of stress watching the numbers flying around in front of you.. and, like you say, it was like being on a hot plate - sometimes you smell bacon and other times you smell your own feet burning..
As for the 1% risk, that's just me. I don't like risking more than 1% of my account, but I know some guys risk a lot more. I used to work out the number of contracts I could trade based on how many ticks I was willing to let it go against me. I guess if you were pro, you'd just trade a set number of contracts and not worry about what % you're risking because you're going to get out quick if you're wrong anyway. I'm too risk-averse for that.
A bit of a blabbering post, but hopefully that explains my experiences with futures?
