Returning BRD, 75+ Gear for EXP?Follow

I'm returning after about an 8 month break from the game (yes, another thread about a returning player), and I want to get back into BRD. I just had a few questions.

The main thing I'm worried about is gear. I don't really have any uber rare/ex equipment right now (just my old old regular AF). Mainly, I wanted to get back into exp'ing, and then work towards getting the more hard-to-get gear after reaching 90. What's the standard gear and gearsets these days for BRD in exp? I know it's all abyssea now 75+, so I just didn't know if AF and gear from the AH (sha'ir? demon helm?) would cut it anymore, at least til 90 and I can start working on the new r/e gear.

Also, I know there's a thread about it and I did read through it, but I just wanted to get a definite answer on BRD pulling in abyssea. Is pulling expected these days in abyssea like it was for the old merit pts on birds, etc.? I did a /sea on brds today, and basically all of them are /whm now. Do we just play our songs and backup cure now, like the old days? Or do we pull with /whm now instead of /nin? If we're expected to pull, that is.

Thanks for your time!

Bard aren't expected to main pull in most Abyssea alliances (people have wised up), but I'll usually offer to backup pull if the main pullers need a break. (Right now, there are plenty enough THF 85s desperate to get to 90 to main pull to make bard pulling a very rare sight.)

More likely, you'll be given a party of 5 melee and expected to main heal them.