Surface Table Treatment?

Guys,

I have been lucky enough to get myself a 3'x3'x6" granite surface table from a local engineering company that was closing.

Its in very good condition and my preliminary checks with a test indicator and height gauge appear really good. My concern though is the stone itself feels very dry and the gauges etc dont seem to slide as nicely as I would like. When I cleaned the table down using acetone it took on a very dark and predominantly black appearance but as the acetone evaporated Im left with a much lighter looking stone.

What can I use on the stone to make it more slippery and restore the darker appearance?

Ive heard some people using lanolin or a mixture then buffed off, any advice welcome.

I use household ammonia to clean mine.

Dave

Back in my CMM days I used a waterless paste cleaner... Rub it on buff it off.

If the surface lightened after the first cleaning attempt it was probably very dirty and perhaps oily. If it was neglected and not kept properly clean you'll probably need to make several iterations of cleaning before it gets to a satisfactorily clean state. Once it gets there it should be slick as ice. You don't want a dark surface, it should be a bit light. That means it's clean and dry.

I think the black is not dirt but dye. Not all black granite stones are actually naturally black. If you clean with ammonia (good choice) or some non-pumice laced hand cleaner containing alcohol (another good choice), you could clean your stone without removing the dye. But acetone is a pretty strong solvent. So I think that's what's happening. The acetone is dissolving some of the dye and you are wiping it off the surface. I'll bet you are flooding the surface with acetone as well. Not a big deal to remove the dye, btw.

Check out this PM post for more info. I personally clean with hand cleaner (permatex) or windex and always use the medical lint free wipes ("kim wipes"? forget if that's how its spelled or just how I say it!).

I'll bet it's dirt. Think about how dirty any other horizontal surface gets in a shop. Clean it until it stops changing color. I've used the Starrett cleaner, the spray from McMaster Carr, the old foaming spray can Do-All cleaner (my favorite, but I can't find it anymore), ammonia, windex, IPA, and really whatever is on hand.
Mine is a tad darker with the Starrett cleaner because I think it leaves a mild film, but I've never noticed much of a difference in how parts slide with it vs. other cleaners. There is a massive difference between how well things slide on a clean vs. grim or dusty plate however.