If you're poking hole in the wing sheeting, it's usually not a too-thin sheeting, but the fact that fingertips are pressing into the wood. As you pick up the model, the model's weight is being concentrated onto small areas, your fingertips, which puts a very large amount of localized pressure and will 'pop' the sheeting.

Even 1/16" sheeting on a wing is plenty thick. Some wings use 3/32" sheeting. The key is to not use fingertip pressure when picking up the model. Use the flat of the hand. Yes, you'll need two hands to pick it up.

Better yet, pick it up just under the fuselage below the leading edge. On a low-wing model, your thumb can stick up at the leading edge while your palm and fingers are splayed across the bottom in the center. On a high-wing model, the landing gear is a good place to stabilize the model. Reach under the model with the flat of the hand, use a thumb to stabilize it and then lift. Don't allow any part of the wing to be squeezed between the fingers and thumb. The other hand should be on a part of the fuselage to help stabilize the model. You don't need a viselike-grip to hold onto your model.

I learned this technique long ago because many of my models were covered in Silkspan and tissue, and you's easily poke through if you weren't careful.