I was planning to adjust my bug's rear brake shoes at the weekend, but I couldn't! It's a 1959 so there are no holes in the backing plate to get to the star wheels. The Gregory's Manual says to rotate the wheel until the hole in the drum lines up with the star wheels, but there isn't a hole in the drum either!

Also, the drum is 4-stud and there is a spacer for the 5-stud wheel. I took the spacer off to see if there was a hole in the drum behind it but there isn't.

Did a previous owner put the wrong year drums on the car?

And how can I adjust the brake shoes without access to the star wheels???

Hi

The 5 stud drums are adjusted through the front of the drum, the 4 stud through the backing plate at the bottom rear of the backing plate.

Steve

Thanks for the info.

Well I've got 4-stud drums and old-style backing plates with no holes. So there's no way to adjust them!

What parts do I need to swap? Presumably more than just the drums

Hi

You could get some later backing plates with shoes and fit those.

Steve

Interesting, why don't you drill holes in the backing plate?

Why don't you just get wide 5 drums. If you are running adaptors they are illegal anyway, so just get some wide 5 drums.