I'm using HO code 83 track and hand painting it with Rail Tie Brown and Rust paints. I'm getting ready to put down my bridge track, what color are the ties? I've seen both brown and black on the net.
New ties are black and fade over time. Either black, brown or any shade leading to gray would be appropriate. It depends on how old and weather worn you want the bridge ties to look.
I stain my ties with Minwax Dark Walnut stain. It give a mix of ties from dark brown/black to light brown. If you want darker, you could use Ebony ( black ) stain.
Colors can vary considerably.
These truss bridges are on UP's transcontinental main, and the ties are similar in coloration to the adjacent track. The wood trestle at right is part of an industry spur and has weathered to a lighter gray http://www.railpictures.net/photo/552725/ .
Ties on this trestle are more of a uniformgrayish brown http://www.railpictures.net/photo/231420/ .
These former WP and SP bridges have ties with similar colors to the rest of the track as well http://www.rgusrail.com/nvpalisade.html .
Rob Spangler
A very much Thanks for the answers and pictures, i guess it's time to stain or paint. I'll get on that on my upcoming 4 day weekend.