I need to get back on the muddler bandwagon as they caught me quite a few fish last season...
The heads I found a nightmare to start off with but once i made 2 changes it became easier:
1 - switch to GSP thread for the head - you can pull as hard as you want and it wont break - allows you to get reallydense packed heads
2 - get some razor blades for shaping the head - much easier than scissors
however you need to do a lot of hoovering ....