Just reading this now. From near the beginning of this thread, the first thing that popped into my mind was "He'd be better off spending his money with @funnyman rather than getting more goodies. As I continued to read, I see thats exactly what some of the vets have been saying. Its great advice, brother!
There's plenty of time for gear, but in my humble opinion, it doesn't have to be right now. I'd get a solid base where your bf has greatly decreased, then start looking to gear. Plus, the less bf you have, the easier it will be to observe the progress that your making, and to tweak things for better results.
Just my opinion, brother. We're all pulling for you!