gear upgrade with valor was a imo a great and its a shame they took it off in 5.2 as it really helps slower guilds over time. that being said lets see what ideas we the community can come up with, in order to bring it back.
heres mine: make hc gear non upgradeable, and non hc gear upgradeable only by 4 ilvls - at half cost.
posted on eu forums but i think then ppl on these boards are way more creative :)