A very interesting project! I think I may be of some assistance, I posted a guide here on how to get Linux on a Samsung Galaxy Tab a while ago Linux on the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1... And you can too!
Some bits there may be of help.
Regarding the kernel, don’t bother. Android kernels are royally messed up. Consider each one an entirely incompatible fork as far as updates are concerned. I tried getting a 3.16 kernel working on the Tab (originally 3.0) and just got lost in patch rework hell. If you don’t fancy building an entire distro from scratch (I wouldn’t), start trying to get an older distro (like Debian Jessie) working first if its a 3.x kernel. The kernel config will almost certainly need modification. Take a look at the differences in the config used for the Linux and Android kernels for the Samsung Galaxy Tab that’s linked that old guide, there may be some clues.
Good luck and God’s speed!