The Lorenz was originally designed to use an “Austrian” bullet. Unlike the Minié ball, which was created with a hollow base, the slug had a solid flat base and two deep grooves, designed to compress and expand upon firing, forcing the lead fins into the rifling grooves. Bullets of this type, likely used by Southern troops, have been unearthed on a number of battlefields—believed to have been cast in Raleigh, N.C., from molds imported through the blockade. Conventional Minié balls, however, were most commonly issued to soldiers who carried Lorenz rifle-muskets.