Assuming both candidates have the same flying history when they got out of the military, I find it hard to believe that an interview board ain't gonna look pejoratively at a guy who has been keeping currency by flying single engine piston equipment privately in excess of 12-24 months vs same guy employed in say a single engine turbine part 91/135 outfit for currency, or is a rich daddy type and can get turbine time privately.

If in indeed engine type is inconsequential to your chances of getting hired wrt recency requirements, then there really is no point in giving yourself that haircut with the regionals. You can own your own piston single for cheap and fly the snot out of it for years and not lose the income opportunity accepting a regional FO gig (and even some 135 outfits) would place upon you. I flew 265 hours in my old Piper Warrior II in 12 months privately without even trying, and that was commuting to my girlfriend on the weekends after my white jet slaveship driver "2 a day every day" weekday gig. Imagine what one could do with any day job, since they all pay better than 1st year FO, but otherwise no weekday commitment to fly. You'd double that in a heartbeat. The C-150 I used to own cost me $15K to acquire and burned 5GPH of mogas from the gas station down the street. Flying 100 hours in that is a drop in the bucket. No way I would lose the income opportunity, even juxtaposed to freggin' Olive Garden, in order to take a regional job just for the sake of recency, if this avenue is supposedly good enough.

Somehow I get the feeling that this avenue isn't really gonna cut it for these mainline outfits though. I think the real world implication of the currency requirements is that you better have turbine recency to whatever hours within 12 months.....