Yeah. Windows 95 was designed to be usable on a 386DX and run nicely on a basic non-overdrive 486 with 8MB of RAM -- especially the RTM version. Even a fully updated OSR 2.5 install is happy in 16MB of RAM running real software, and without OSR2 many later programs will not run. You can avoid installing IE 4.0 by immediately Xing out of the IE installer that Windows launches the first time it hits the desktop. I think some relatively modern Windows 95 software might need OSR 2.5s updated files.
Windows 98 really needs 32MB to be of much use, and is still liable to be swappy unless you have more. And while it supports 486 CPUs, the IE integration is heavy and it runs better on a Pentium. You could Nlite Windows 98, but stomping on the OS like that can and does create compatibility issues, especially if you do an aggressive Nlite that actually makes 98 run as fast as 95. I don't think 98 makes much sense anyway, because most software which has any business running on a 486 or early Pentium supports Windows 95. And the newer the OS you pick, the more likely early Windows software that targeted Windows 3.1 and 95 RTM is to break.
One caveat is, with 95 you'll have to do more tracking down of drivers.