I have used eyelets for years with no failures. I solder all eyelets to insure a good connection. As far as a tool for staking them, I got mine so long ago that I don't remember where it come from. I machine my own double sided PCBs, on a CNC engraving machine, and set all pad and drill sizes, including vias, to accommodate the eyelets.
If you don't want to go to that extent, component leads soldered on both sides, where possible, are a viable option.