Not a bad welder, but I'll give you the same advice I give everybody looking to learn how to weld...TAKE A CLASS! Your local community college will offer a MIG course. take it. Learn on somebody else's stuff. You'll earn back your tuition on consumables and steel that you'll use up during the course, plus you'll learn good habits instead of bad ones. You need to get some serious practice, too, before even attempting anything like control arms. Your life and the lives of those around you depend on those not breaking. You need to know what you're doing before you try that.
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I am a part-time welding instructor at a community college, this is the best way to learn IMO, and is not that expensive if you do it right. You can register as Continuing Education Student, and the cost is around $100 or look into Saturday classes.
I can not speak for the welding school that is in your hometown but in my shop we do not stop students from learning(that what we are there for). I mean if I have a student that whats to learn how to MIG weld, he/she can come in anytime the shop is open to practice welding(not work on you truck).
Another benefit of taking a welding class is that you can work with different instructors, advanced students, and welders that have been doing this for years, this will give you access to many different welding styles and techniques that no one welder could teach you. I also let other students sit in on my classes if they think that it is something that want to learn. I know that in my school we do everything we can to make you be the best welder you want to be.
Something else to think about is the amount of equipment you will get to learn how to use. Like brakes, shears, plasma cutters, oxy/acet cutters and welders, Stick welding, MIG, TIG, CNC Plasma table, Virtual Reality welding(thats right VR Welding), STT MIG, 20 TON Iron worker, band saws (vertical and Horizontal), drill press, and weld testing equipment. Of course this not all covered in one class.
Finally, you get to try out all different kinds of MIG welders. We have 20 MIG ready stations with all kinds of different welding machines to use, 110 volt MIGs (the size you are looking to buy), 220 volt MIGs (my favorite) and the monster 440 three phase MIGs. You also get to use different brands of machines(Miller, Lincoln,etc...). Not to mention different wire diameters, different kinds of wire (flux core, Copper coated steel, Stainless, etc..) and different kinds of gas (CO2, Argon mix, etc...).
On my XJ I have made front and rear bumpers, control arms, cross-member, and tube doors and would not want to do it with a 110 welder. I am not saying that it can not be done but with the experience I have I would feel more comfortable doing it with a bigger machine if I was going to MIG it.
Welding has changed my life.
