Tapping excersises can be found all over this site. I even bought a book on tapping. I didn't use it much but what I got from it helped me a lot.
As for your gear, dont worry about it. When you practice your tapping excersises, use a clean tone. Remember, accuracy is more important that speed. Once you have your tapping licks down with no buzzing and with nice even timing, then speed up and add distortion.
If you want some excersises e mail me. My adress is in my profile.