Hi guys. First of all, when I did my mesh conversions, I did the 8" kick drum as well (I used the 682drums cone method and removed ALL the foam, flipped the metal disc plate).
The kick stand holds the pad using two of the lugs so you take it off the stand, then unscrew the mount from your larger tom, then put that one on the kick stand with same two lugs, and screw the leftover mount from the 12" (or 10" pad) onto the spare 8". One of the reasons I did this so early on was I really wanted to have my upper toms different sizes for the look.
I couldn't find a photo of the conversion that would show how it looks inside, but I did find a pic from when I had my 12" pad mounted on the kick stand.
By the way, in the attached photo, I've got the 12" on the kick stand, and I'd bought a second 8" pad and so I put that plus the original kick pad up on a concert tom stand. It was really cool for a while, reminded me of my early 20s drumset as I bought a pair of concert toms that were up above my hi-hat. Also was using the Hart Dynamics 15" snare with the hand-hammered shell. I'm using that one over at a friend's place. Gotta say, those Hart drums are rock solid. The mesh heads are the toughest I've ever had and the thing was all metal, weighed a ton but it was like playing a real snare. Before buying my DM10X I seriously wanted one of their big kits (not the cheaper version that used similar pads to Alesis, but their top line kit but alas, they folded and of course, my DM10X was a quarter of the price (or an eighth?).
I do have to say this 12" pad with mesh as a kick pad was way too bouncy. Mind you, that was with the 682 mesh head. I tried it with a Roland mesh and it was much better. And now I'm using the Laurin kick drum and it's generally great..once in a while I get a double trigger/bouncing but I can usually avoid it by placing my foot higher up on the pedal.. too low on the pedal and it gets super bouncy (better while attempting Bonham doubles or triples on the kick but not for standard beats).
Sorry to ramble on, I just wanted to add for any newbies (or old folk) that my kit(s) have gone through constant change and experimentation.. I did this with my acousic sets back in the late 70's and early 80's as well.. always trying different positioning, techniques, different gear to find what I liked best. Now with my return to drumming 25 yrs later, being into e-kits, it seems to be a neverending adjustment and something of a hobby to move cymbals here or there, adjust the heights of my toms, try different methods of foot placement on the kick and hi-hat, and that's just the hardware side. And it's not a labour of pain, it's the opposite.. a real intriguing journey of discovery as a drummer to check out how to make the most of this wonderful thing. I've got buddies I jam with that have drumsets in their basement for me and they are trying them out and always asking about how to play or trying out different placements and I always tell them not to stress out, just keep moving things around and trying different ways as it will always be a learning experience. In the 80's I had my ride up high at a 45 deg angle like most at the time, snare and toms were angled so exteme and high up as well as my crashes. Now I keep everything low.. my toms are almost flat, snare too, cymbals are low.. I'm getting old and I couldn't keep my right arm up high enough to hit the ride for long periods of time.. so things change all the time.
Sorry, not sure why I started to wax poetic and off-topic a bit, just saying that it's great to try stuff out.. see if you like it, if it plays or feels better.. and then try something else. I think that 12" kick pad lasted a week and I went back to the 8" (or tried a 10" for a few days). There's no wrong setup. I'd love to test out the new Strike kick and see how that feels