The only WiFi bridges that pass AppleTalk from Ethernet to WiFi and back again are Apple's own ones, unfortunately, and even this seems a little bit questionable (as you have noticed; it may be mac-only, or at least require client support?). I believe this is because Apple misinterpreted a standard that was worded unclearly, or at least that seems to have been what discussions on various IETF mailing lists seems to have concluded. It's something to do with the fact that AppleTalk Phase 2 uses LLC headers in a slightly incorrect way (using them to distinguish between phase 1/phase 2). Ethernet standards bureaucracy is one of my least favourite things so I stopped digging about there...
Some older Ethernet cards don't do auto speed negotiation properly, and need to be set manually to 10mbit, either by putting a 10mbit hub between them and the switch, or by having a switch where you can turn off auto negotiation. I believe some also need the port to be set to half-duplex, but I don't have any that require that personally.
seconding this, a ZIP drive has been one of the most useful things I have had for getting things on and off my vintage macs.