Many many many many (a whole Lot of ) years ago guys used to get wheel spacers from J.C.Whitney either to make their cars look tougher without buying new wider tires and/or wheels or to make the new wheels and tires fit, Because back then nobody knew about "backspacing". As a matter of fact we used to mount the stock wheels bakards (backwards) on the studs to give the car a wider stance like those "Hot Rods" we couldn't afford or the race cars we saw at the Daytona Beach track.
The spacers were either solid units with their own studs that you bolted on your drums with the stock stud bolts. This also allowed for mounting Cadillac wheels on an old VW. Don't laugh..I did it!
Or the spacers could be individual for each stud just like very thick washers. Anyway, either way wasn't the safest thing to do. Usually the stock studs ripped out because of the extra stress the wider wheels put on the brake drums (we didn't hae those fancy shmancy Dics brakes way back then.
I LMAO when I see some jackass riding around in a Honda Accord or Jeep with the wheels and tires sticking out beyond the fenders (Like the back side of the wheel is also out beyond the fenders). I've also seen the results when the car loses it's whole hub/disc assembly with the wheels attached flying across the road and the car headed to a ditch without their wheel. FAH!
Bottom line I agree don't move them ut much more than 1 /2 inch..and pray all the under frame parts are in nice taught unworn condition.