The problem with smilers and emote huds is that they don't replace animations. They actually add to them. So if your avatar is in the middle of a "surprise" facial animation and you cue up a "teeth smile", it becomes a combination of the two. And even if that wasn't the case, I'm not looking for a permanent smile, I'm trying to lock the "no expression" default animation.
But yeah, unfortunately the more people I ask about this, the more impossible it seems. Oh well, I'll just make do.
Thanks for the replies.