1951 Brake adjustment
In a nutshell: these brakes adjust each shoe independently. They may
have self-adjustors on them. There is a screw head on each side of the
backing plate, slightly above the horizontal center line. Jack up the
wheel, and block the car for safety. Place a wrench on the screw head,
with the arm of the wrench pointing up. (If the screw is the center of a
clock face, your wrench is at 12:00) While turning the wheel, move the
free end of the wrench outward toward the wheel rim. That will cause the
cam on the inside of the screw to move that shoe outward. Move the
wrench far enough, and you should feel drag on the wheel. I like to move
the cam until the brake seems to lock up, then back it off until it just
comes free. Repeat with the other adjusting screw on the same wheel,
then go on to the other wheels. 

This procedure works for all the adjustor screws (cams). By having the
wrench point up, you make the direction the shoe moves agree with the
direction you move the wrench handle, so it's an aid to memory, really.

If there is something in your way; well sure, you can have the wrench
point down, but IMAGINE in your mind's eye how it would move when
pointing up, and that is your guide.

Hope this makes sense. <g> It does work, trust me.

Gordon Richmond