Hmm... Another Artificial Harmonics Question

ok... so some people may recognize me since i posted a question on artificial harmonics like two days ago

i'm having a basic concern here... when i 'dig in' to the string and pluck it, it feels like my thumb isn't even touching the string after the pick.
one thing for sure, i AM holding the pick tight enough by the tip
(i tried holding it even tighter, but no difference....)
but it feels like the pick is pushing the string so that the thumb can't really touch the string

(strangely, i get squels when i pluck the string with both my thumb and the pick at the same time, not thumb followed by pick
but i'm not even sure if that's right because i've seen MANY instructions and videos about artificial harmonics and not single one of them mentioned plucking with thumb and pick at the same time.)

so i'm basically lost... i'm having a hard time just doing what the instructions told me to do
is it suppose to feel like my thumb isn't touching the string??????

That's It... I Just Cant Get Artificial Harmonics To Work

yes, i've checked out the lesson here and some additional youtube videos

I've been trying to make that squeling sound for a quite a while now and it's not working at all
i thought i wasn't holding the pick close enough to the tip so i tried holding it closer
but that didn't help...

either my thumb kills the sound, or i end up just playing the regular note, only stronger

is there any tip that i should take not of??

Specific Guitar Question

first of all, i did check the gear guide (which had some brands listed)
and i'm sort of a beginner when it comes to choosing a good axe

well, i'm into metals and right now i have a Fender Mexican Stratocaster, SSS
first of all, i just want some people's opinion on this... i know SSS isn't really for metal stuff
but i heard some say that MIM Standard Strat is the best in the price range and i heard others say that it's just bad...
do you people think i should change and get a new guitar more suited for metal, or is MIM SSS fine?

also, what are some specific guitar models that are affordable, and still sound good for metals?
(i'm not like a pro or anything but i'll need something good enough to jam with my buddies later down the road)
I TEND to shy away from Ibanez guitars (for some reasons), but please, feel free to suggest me any gear

thanks

btw, i know there are some topic about which metal guitar is good
but my main question is the one about my strat

General Question - What To Do?

so i'm a new member here, and i'm kinda lost as to what lesson to check out
i read the page about this and it suggested that i take what i really want to take

just to give you guys some ideas about me,
i'm like a beginner-intermediate level, and i know some open string chords, A&E root bar chords, basic theory, and some basic picking techniques (I'm not a fast picker yet, but i'm not a beginner either)
I'm into metals, and i was actually looking for a way to start improvising and making riffs and stuff

i looked into couple of those lessons, but the instructions had some crazy stuff that i never even heard of... and it was as if they are expecting everyone to know that stuff (i looked into the theory lesson section, but really couldn't find a whole lot)
phrygian scale, dominant 7th, minor 3rd, etc. just to name a few

do any of you have any suggestions on what i should be looking at right now?
cause i'm definitely lost right now....

thanks