First off if you can get your UTH and thermostat in first and then have the set up running for a week before getting the snake it would probably make your life easier. There is a considerable amount of tweaking involved to getting your enclosure just right; doing this before the snake gets there is a major plus.

Once you get your new snake its best to leave him completely alone for the first week. This gives him time to get used to his new home and settle in. After the week of alone time you can offer your first meal. Hopefully he will eat it. You could start handling 48 hours after feeding. You don't want to handle before this because they need some time to digest.

With that said I like to wait 2 weeks of succesful feedings before I start any routine handling.