Seeking advice on rear drums r&r or adjustment

Hello,
My rear brake drums are really giving me a headache. I can’t get them adjusted right. It has seemed like I couldn’t get them adjusted right so I replaced the hardware and self adjusters. After, I set them as best I could and then did the slam on brakes backwards thing until the pedal had firmed up a decent amount and parking brake worked.
They still aren’t working right though. Sometimes the parking brake bites really well and sometimes it does not. Sometimes brake feel is decent but it seems like it takes two presses to firm it up. It’s a lot softer than I’d like.
What should I be doing or looking for here? The pads have enough material on them.

 

If you didn't do it this way it wasn't done correctly:

 

The parking brake is "supposed" to keep them adjusted once set correctly. But they do a poor job at it.
For me, I like to set them to where they are slightly dragging when spinning the wheel. More than just hear it, I like to feel it drag too.

 

The adjuster is activated by using the parking brake - not by backing up.
Do above adjust first.
At the bottom of the rear brakes is a shoe pivot that can rust solid and this moves when the parking brake is applied so free that up.
Make sure the parking brake cables are working also and not broken.
If the cables are stretched they can be tightened up under the center console storage box.