1) Yes Astral Projection Clones all your equipment. Yes this means that expended use items become super sweet. Yes you can abuse it horrendously with scrolls or Rings of Wishes or whatever.

2) Yes Astral Projection has many lines which serve only to prove the point that the WotC authors didn't even realize that Planeshift exists. You can either rule that casting the spell on any plane other then the Material is impossible or you can accept that all the "Material Planes" can just be removed from the text.

3) Something everyone should know about Astral Projection: Nightmares can cast it at will at CL 20 without using components as a suprenatural (IE non-dispellable) ability. This can be ruled as the ability to cast is (Su) and the spell is still a spell and dispellable, but still.

So what you do is:

Step -1: Have a level 9 Wizard in your party
Step 0: Be inside your super fortress
Step 1: Buff up the Wizard's Cha checks with items and spells
Step 2: Make a Magic Circle, Cast Dimensional Anchor in it, then Planar Bind a Nightmare.
Step 3: Have it's task be to cast and maintain AP on the party until the spell ends naturally (IE not him dismissing it).
Step 4: Project or Planeshift (level 9 Cleric needed) to wherever you want to adventure.
Step 5: Rest to regain spells.
Step 6: Enjoy you CL days of adventuring while immortal at level 9.