penetrate

[Marzena]

Hi all,
I'm trying to rewrite a sentence "The bullet went 3 inches into the wood," using the word 'penetrate,' and I stumbled on 3 inches.
The bullet penetrated 3 inches of wood.
The bullet penetrated the wood by 3 inches.
Other options?

 

[grubble]

The bullet penetrated 3 inches into the wood.

 

[George French]

Marzena, why would you want to change the first sentence anyway? Is this an excercise?

I would leave it alone...

GF..

 

[Marzena]

I'm editing a book and trying to respect the author's choice of words.