A pain in the ass to get on old style tire machines. 8 inch wheel is probably early 70's. From the time frame when everyone and their dog were selling custom wheels and wide tires were getting popular.
The "custom" designation in this case is most likely because the centers are stamped for 14" shells, 12.375" ID; typical 15" ID is 12.620". So the 15" "custom" shells allow you to upsize 14" centers in 15" shells.