: The Awl is a neat tool but, it's painfully slow!!! It is better suited to
: heavy thick material such as leather or where a sewing machine wont work.
: I put some strap attachment patches on a mountain sled to be able to carry
: skis and it worked great for this job. The sewing machine is better suited
: to nylon or polyester webbing. For those without the sewing skils, the
: triglides (thanks for the correction, Shawn) work well and allow for later
: adjustment.

I use an awl for stiching leather on occasion (when I'm not doing standard dual needle leather stiches), but it's not good for much else. I could probably do 10-20 on a sewing machine in the time it takes to do one with an awl, and have neater, stronger seams.

Another non-sewing alternative is good ol' "swat" rivets. They can often be worked through webbing without even punching/melting holes in it. A couple of swats with a hammer and you're good to go. Tandy Leather stores and some fabric stores sell swat rivet kits. Just make sure you get genuine brass rivets, especially if you expect to use the boat in salt water.