If we are to analyse the structure and give it descriptive name, it would be
Perfected propositional-subjunctive
To me, it is a derivative form of what I would call
Possessive propositional-subjunctive
If I had {something}, I would.
-
Apart from a simple noun, {something} could be some form of complex entity or noun.
If {something} is formed from a verbial phrase, or an experience, that verb or experience should be completed. Simply because, logic demands that we to have the creation of a concept completed before we could hold it in our bosom to talk about it.
Even if the experience is an ongoing experience, {something} must describe a concrete existent concept for you to hug.
If I had {a house with ten bed rooms}, I would sing all day.
If I had {painted the front door}, my house would look pretty.
If I had {been painting the front door}, I would not have {answered the phone}.
2.
If I had {}, I would {},
is not actually a past or past perfected tense.
It is the subjunctive mood, which does not have a tense of its own.
The past perfected/completed tense is deployed for a subjunctive in the absence of its own tense in English.
3.
Using the past or past perfected tense makes sense.
We could look at the tense system as a three dimensional space. Primarily we have the simple tenses as the first dimension
- past
- present
- future
- indefinite/infinite
We could also have a second dimension, time range, not normally applied to the infinite tense
- punctiliar (at a point in time)
- ongoing (aka continuous)
- over a range of time
- completed
However, we also could have a 3rd dimension describing the time-displacement or time-zone of when the speaker of the story is anchored on.
e.g.
Anchored in the present: Today, I am going to school.
Anchored in the past: Two years ago, I had been going to school.
Anchored in the future: Three years from now, I will have been going to medical school.
The subjunctive describes hypothetical situations and in what time-zone should we anchor it? Rightly, we should anchor hypotheticals in an indefinite/infinitive time-zone.
In English grammar, there is no such distinct time-zone, but we anchor it on a past or perfected time-zones that would best allow us to pretend that it is placed in the hypothetical time-zone.
4.
There are two usual modes of uses of the verb "have"
- to denote possessing an experience
- to denote taking an action.
I have had breakfast = I have eaten breakfast.
However, the above is not the problem/situation we are facing in your question.
The time-zones has split into two sub-spaces:
- the subjunctive being assigned past zone, as usual
- the actual time-zone where the hypothesis is being applied.
A. Subjunctive assigned to past time-zone,
Hypothesizing on present:
If I had {experience in Java}, I would be able to apply for the job today.
B. Subjunctive assigned to past time-zone,
Hypothesizing on the past:
If I had {had my breakfast}, I would not have {fainted} that day.
If she had {had a philosophy of live-and-let-live}, she would not have {killed herself} two years ago.
In situation B, there is a coincidence between subjunctive time-zone, and the past perfect tense:
I had {had experience in C#} which allowed me to apply for this job two years ago.
If I had {had experience in C#}, I would have {applied for this position} two years ago.
It's quite a confusing mix-up when having to describe both situations within the same sentence. Perhaps, to emphasize the hypothesizing on the possibility of a past completed situation, we could rephrase,
If it were that I had {had experience in C#}, I would have {applied for this position} two years ago.
5.
The indefinite/infinite adverbs ever, never.
Describing an having had an experience, without specifying when in the past:
Have you ever seen the rain?
The conjugate of ever:
I have never seen a train
Subjunctive assigned to past time-zone,
Hypothesizing on indefinite/infinite time of experience, where the time range is anytime before now :
If you ever had {experience in C#}, it is not evident in you programming style.
Subjunctive assigned to past time-zone,
Hypothesizing on the indefinite/infinite, where the time range is anytime before two years ago :
If you had {ever had the philosophy to be kind}, you would not have {kicked me out} two years ago.
There is no need for subjunctive displacement for "touch", because its adverb "ever" has already floated it in indefinite space:
If he ever touches me again, I would smack him.
This sentence seems structural sound but illogical, because it would take forever to determine that he had never touched you anymore:
If he never touches me anymore, I would divorce him.
If I ever have {a beer}, it would be Heineken.
If I ever had {a beer}, it would have been Carlsberg.
If I ever had {had a beer}, I could have been having Guinness.
Subjunctive situation, created by infinite adverb, floating in a past but unspecified/indefinite time-displacement of a past perfected possibility:
If I ever had {a situation where I had needed his help}, it would have {been due to my lack of skills}.
which can be abbreviated to:
If I ever had {had needed his help}, it would have {been due to my lack of skills}.
