i just switched to snare from trombone and i find that my snare's harness is way uncomfortable after a little while, and my drum instructor said that we could bring some padding. does anyone know what materials i should use and how to put it on?

With most harnesses I've used, if the stock padding is in decent shape and the harness isn't bent, you're probably not going to make things much better by adding other padding. You can actually make the problem worse by causing the weight of the drum to be carried by a different part of your body. Before resorting to extra padding, it's probably best to see if there's an adjustment you can make.

What kind of harness is it? (What brand? What type -- vest, tube, t-bar, etc.?)

Where's the harness uncomfortable, and how does it hurt? Is it "digging in" to your body, or do you just have muscle fatigue from carrying the weight?

it's a Pearl competitor harness (T-bar). it digs into my shoulders after a while.

The shoulder bars on the Competitor series carriers (and other companies' lower-end carriers) tend to be narrower than their higher-end counterparts. Narrower bars means the carrier is transferring the weight to a smaller part of your shoulder, which could explain the discomfort.

You may want to start by trying to adjust the shoulder bars. A wider or narrower setting might be better for you. If that doesn't help, you can add padding but don't expect miracles.

Foam pipe insulation, found in the plumbing section of most home improvement stores, is pretty similar to harness padding foam, but a little bit softer. It's round, but slit lengthwise and flattens out pretty easily. You could add a layer of that to your carrier's shoulder bars. (There's a chance your local stores may not have this stuff if you live in a warmer climate.)

YESS another ex trombone snare player. Welcome dude. just try adding a tiny bit of egg carton type foam to the shoulder pads, in thin strips. it worked for me until i got an aluminum tube carrier.

i had a really painfull harness, so i tooh an old t shirt and tore it up and taped it on. then it was much nicer. just be sure to put it on evenly, or else it might end up being worse

http://www.pearldrum.com/marchacc.asp
scroll down to MCC-1 Comfort Core Cushions
your harness might have included one of these on the backbar of your harness (if there is a back bar) but its a good idea to order a pair of these and put them on the shoulder bars

Soo right now i am marching snare and we are using really old Pearl vest carriers,and my padding on the carrier is sliding off i guess with the combination of the glue,heat and sweat from the past few years its just falling off. Does anyone know the type of material the padding is so i can just redo it myself possibly?

When I wasn't fortunate enough to teach at a school with proper funding, we used pipe insulation to refoam harnesses. Some of it comes with adhesive already applied.

Alright! thanks snairpaint i think i might go with some of that.Im gonna check home depot to see if they have some.