Writing unpitched percussion for symphonic orchestra

I am writing some complex work for symphonic orchestra and I am having some real trouble in writing for unpitched percussion (snare, cymbals, bass drum, triangle and tam-tam).
1. First, I could not find a way of displaying all these instruments in a single staff (to gain space). Every instrument is displayed in a staff per se.
2. Second, I get only a very feeble sound for some instruments, and no sound at all for others, although I defined the instrument in the mixer. Ex: Marching Snare, Marching Bass etc.
3. The palette I get when I try to write a note is not the Drums Palette mentioned in the manual. Just one or two options are available.
4. Going through the Manual, I found that most drum notation examples etc, is dedicated to jazz instruments. I could not find a sample for symphonic orchestra.
I would appreciate very much some clues about how to go about it, remembering I am a senior 76 old composer...
Thank you!