I dont know if this idea has been mentioned, but why not just have a vendor right next to the starting quest in each zone: they would have any BoA gear you have found, or Heirloom gear you have bought on another character. The cost to buy these items would be nothing, you just right click what you want, it goes into your inventory, you equip it, and being questing.
I mean, they could even make it really simple. Link BoA gear / Heirloom gear to achievements. Give 5 achievement points for each piece of gear, maybe even a title for collecting all pieces, and whenever you get an achievement for that particular heirloom piece, it becomes available on the vendor.
Buying Heirloom gear for the justice / honor points wouldnt put any gear into your inventory, instead it would just give you the achievement, and make the gear available from the vendor in the starting zone, and possibly there could be another vendor near the guild vendors in the major cities.