What do you use to polish/coat the top of a table saw? What kind of cleaner and lubricant should I use for cordless and/or corded power tools? What’s the best way to restore aged or tarnished metal? The manuals and people I have asked refer to a "mild solution" for cleaning, please expand on this and maybe suggest what types of chemicals would deliver the strongest and best results.
For the table saw, you can wax with a common, NON SILICONE, furniture wax such as Johnson’s or Minwax. Let it haze, then buff off, just like waxing a car. Don’t use car wax. You can get a special compound called BoeShield, but I’ve never seen the need for it.
You can do similar for the shoes of portable power tools and beds and fences of jointers and planers.
For general cleaning, just a soft cloth, brush, or air gun. If there is oily residue on the surfaces, you can dampen the rag in naphtha. For non-oily soling, just a cloth dampened in Dawn and water, but I’ve never seen the need for this much cleaning?
To restore tarnished / rusted metal such as old planes and chisels, buff with 0000 steel wool or fine wet-dry sandpaper, lubricated with WD-40 or mineral spirits. Wipe of the swarf with a clean rag.