If you have the rear axle nuts loose for any reason - adjusting alignment/removing wheel/whatever, be sure you firmly apply the rear brake when you tighten the axle nuts to ensure the drum is centered on the plate/shoes. I failed to do that the other day and, when out for a short ride, I found that the brake pedal took a lot more movement and pressure to get any stopping power - not that a rear brake has much anyway. What I mean was that applying "normal" pressure produced virtually no change to velocity.
Then I remembered...so I went back home, loosened the axle nuts, pushed the brake pedal with one foot while tightening the nuts - went back out and had a great rear brake - again, as good as rear brakes can be since they provide almost no real stopping power due to the unweighting. So don't forget to apply the brake to tighten the axle.
