Starting A Shield Nickel Collection

Hi everyone, I have been thinking about getting into Shield nickels as my next project.

Ultimately, my goal as a collector is to have a complete collection of 20th Century U.S. business strikes (1c, 5c, 10c, 25c, 50c, $1 denominations). And for each individual series to have a consistent condition/look/feel/vibe.

However, at point most collectors will hit a cost-prohibitive wall with certain dates... (I'm looking at you, 1916 SLQ and the "Big Three" Barber quarters). So, I have started to work my way backwards into the 19th Century.

I don't consider error coinage as part of a series, like the 1922 Plain Lincoln or the 3-Leg Buffalo, since those were not varieties intentionally stuck and issued by the mint for circulation. I am also not usually interested in proofs, since they were not struck for the purpose of being circulated.

Although this criteria is generally straightforward to apply, it presents a quandary specifically for the Shield nickel series, which is riddled with overdates, proof only years, and other varieties.

I'm curious to get others' thoughts about what constitutes a "business strike" Shield nickel. And, any other thoughts, such as whether the proof-only years are required to achieve series completion.

For reference, the Dansco album contains all three varieties of 1873, includes both proof-only years (although identifies 1878 and not 1877 as being proof-only), and includes the 1883 3 over 2, but it omits the 1866 repunched date.