SeabeeDaddy - I'm with Lionelski/John, for traditional Lionel 'tubular' track the only thing I've ever seen is 'brown' ties for 027 straight track (and all its related curves with a 'lower' profile) and 'black' ties for 031 straight track (and all its related curves with a 'higher' profile). Where this becomes especially important is when looking for 042 curves, which used to be made with both brown and black profiles.
Good Luck!