Well, the drum just arrived, and it will definitely need to be bead blasted before anything else happens.
I checked online to see if I could find anyone near here who does small-job anodizing or powder coating -- no luck.
But the way I found the DIY media blasting place was by calling a local chopper shop to see who did their work -- a great resource!
I also have a newer black Acrolite that, if the shell turns out nicely (it will) I will probably use for parts. It was pretty inexpensive - cheaper than ordering the parts individually, strangely enough...