G654 Granite (Padang Dark)

What Is G654 Granite?

G654 — traded as Padang Dark, Sesame Black, China Impala, Pepperino Dark and Kobra — is a fine-grained dark grey diorite originally quarried at Changtai in Fujian Province, China. It also carries the newer four-digit code G3554, and variants are now produced in Cambodia, Hainan and Liaoning as well as from replacement quarries in Fujian.

For several decades G654 was one of the standard dark stones of the international trade, valued for its uniform colour, dense structure and the way it takes a clean engraved line. It remains one of the most widely specified Chinese granites for paving and memorial work. But the material sold under the name today is not a single stone, and understanding the difference is the single most useful thing a buyer can do before requesting a quotation.

New G654 vs Old G654

This is the most important section on this page.

The original Changtai quarry stopped large-scale mining around 2017–2018, as environmental policy and zoning reduced granite output across the region. Sources differ slightly on whether large-scale mining ceased in 2017 or 2018, but the direction is not in dispute. What remained was stock, small-vein workings, and replacement quarries.

Material sold as "Old G654" today is old stock or a small-vein variant, and remaining original blocks are reported to command very high premiums. Everything else is New G654 — extracted from replacement quarries in Fujian, principally around Zhangzhou and Zhangpu, with SD G654 cited as the more stable large-scale supply — or one of the regional variants.

How the two compare

On the published figures, New G654 is close to the original in performance: marginally lighter, marginally more absorbent, marginally weaker, and materially cheaper. For most paving and cladding work that is an acceptable trade. For a memorial project where the stone will be compared against older monuments in the same cemetery, it is a decision to take deliberately rather than by default.

The two quality risks with new material

1. White veins and "toad spots". Some New G654 carries large, uncontrollable white veins or dark blemishes — described in the trade as toad spots — that are simply unacceptable in memorial work. They are not present in every block, which is exactly what makes them dangerous: a sample can be clean while the production run is not. In memorial work, where a flaw sits on a polished face for a century, this is the defect to screen for specifically.

2. Dyed material. Because darker stone sells at a better price, some supply is treated with black oil or dye to hide flaws and even out colour. The treatment is reported to fade within roughly a year under rain and UV exposure, leaving the stone patchy and lighter than the sample that was approved. It is a straightforward thing to screen for at inspection — a dye does not penetrate deeply, and an inconspicuous test on a sample piece will show it — but it is nearly impossible to detect from a photograph.

What to do about both. Require bundle photographs in daylight before the container is sealed; specify that material must be undyed and that the mill certificate or a supplier declaration says so; and for memorial work, request inspection of the actual production pieces rather than of a selected sample. Third-party pre-shipment inspection can be arranged, and for a memorial contract it is usually worth the cost.

G654 vs G684 and Other Dark Stones

The comparison buyers ask about most is G654 against G684, the black basalt from Fuding. They are different materials answering different briefs.

G654 is a granite; G684 is a basalt. G684 is denser and markedly less absorbent (roughly 0.07–0.18% against G654's 0.12–0.36% depending on finish), and it is genuinely black where G654 is dark grey.

The decisive practical difference is behaviour under flame. G654 tends to grey after thermal treatment, whereas G684 holds its darkness. For a dark exterior pavement specified in a flamed finish — which is most exterior paving — that difference is visible across an entire plaza. If the design calls for flamed dark paving, G684 is normally the stronger choice. If the design calls for a fine-grained grey that reads neutral rather than black, G654 is the more appropriate stone.

Against Shanxi Black and Absolute Black — true black granites with finer and more uniform colour — G654 is lighter, less expensive, and easier to maintain. On a large monument scheme, G654's grey is also less visually dominant, which is why some cemetery specifications prefer it: a field of polished black memorials can read as heavy, where a field of dark grey reads as calm. G654's grain also hides dust and water marks better than a polished black, so it looks presentable for longer between cleanings.

Against the regional variants — Hainan G654, Cambodian G654, Liaoning G654 (also sold as Starlight Granite) — these are similar-looking granites from different deposits. They are not the same stone, and mixing them within one project produces visible variation. If the specification names G654 specifically, ask which deposit the material comes from.

G654 Technical Specifications

Published data for G654 varies more widely than for most Chinese granites, which is consistent with the fact that the name now covers material from several deposits. The ranges below are drawn from multiple sources.

On the compressive strength spread. Published figures run from around 112 MPa to 250 MPa — a range too wide to be explained by testing variation alone. It most likely reflects different deposits and different varieties being tested under the same name. Every figure in that range is far above what paving, cladding, steps or kerbstones will ever impose, so for those applications the number does not constrain the choice. For structural or thin-panel work, request a test report for the actual production lot rather than relying on a published range.

Products and Formats

G654 Paving Stones and Setts

G654 is one of the most widely used paving granites in Europe, supplied as cube stone and setts, paving slabs and tiles for patios, walkways, plazas and driveways. Common module sizes include 300×300, 300×600, 400×600 and 600×600 mm, with cut-to-size dominating in practice. Setts are produced in the usual cube formats and are often supplied mesh-mounted for faster laying.

A flamed finish gives the anti-slip texture that exterior paving needs. Note again that flamed G654 reads grey rather than dark — if the design brief is for dark paving, that is the moment to reconsider G684.

G654 Steps, Treads and Risers

Steps are cut to project dimensions, with typical references including treads of roughly 1200–1300 × 330 mm at 20 mm or 30 mm thickness, and risers of 1200–1300 × 150–170 × 20 mm. Flamed tops with sawn or honed faces are the common exterior specification; anti-slip grooving and nosing profiles are produced to drawing. For a wholesale g654 padang dark granite steps order, the profiles and dimensions should be fixed against a drawing rather than a description, because step geometry varies between markets.

G654 Kerbstones

G654 is a standard material for kerbstones, curbstones and edging, used at road edges, pavement boundaries, garden and square perimeters. Sizes include small sections such as 10×10×30/50 mm class pieces and larger profiles up to 200×200×100 mm, with national profile standards available for UK, Finnish and German specifications. Finishes include natural split (sawn), flamed, bush-hammered, polished, sandblasted and bevelled.

G654 Pool Coping

Pool coping is one of G654's strongest applications. The stone is supplied in L-shaped, bullnose and custom eased-edge profiles, typically combining a flamed or thermal top — for slip resistance at the waterline — with a lighter-brushed or honed exposed edge for a crisper detail. Straight, curved, corner and return pieces are cut from pool drawings or templates, with cut-to-size references from around 300×300 mm up to 600×1200 mm.

The flamed bullnose-edged coping is specifically produced for pool areas and other permanently wet environments. As with any coping, confirm the edge profile against a drawing and fix it before cutting — a bullnose radius cannot be adjusted after production.

G654 Slabs and Tiles

Slabs and tiles are produced in polished, honed and flamed finishes across the standard range: 300×300, 300×600, 400×400, 600×600 and 800×800 mm tiles, and slabs up to roughly 2400 × 1400 mm in 2 cm and 3 cm thicknesses. Polished is used for interior floors, cladding and memorial inscription panels; honed for interior floors and stairs; flamed for exterior work. G654 granite flamed is a distinct product from polished G654 in appearance — lighter and matt — and the two should be approved as separate samples.

G654 Monuments and Memorials

G654 is widely used for tombstones, monuments, gravestones and headstones, particularly for the European and Polish markets. The dark grey with its fine, even grain gives a dignified, neutral appearance that does not visually dominate its surroundings — an advantage on standardised cemetery sections where a field of uniform markers is wanted.

Common memorial formats include upright headstones and tablets, slant markers, flat markers and lawn memorials, companion and double monuments, cross monuments, and carved or shaped profiles. Full-cover monument sets — an upright tablet with a horizontal grave cover and supporting base — are a standard order. Standard thickness runs around 50 mm and 80 mm, with custom thickness available. Minimum orders can be as low as one set for a bespoke memorial. Finishes are usually polished for the inscription panel, with honed, flamed, sandblasted, bush-hammered or rough finishes on the carved faces.

G654 Wall Cladding

Polished and honed G654 is used for exterior and interior wall cladding and facades, where its neutral grey sits comfortably against both lighter and warmer materials. Split-face and sandblasted finishes are used for textured walling.

Surface Finishes

Polished — the standard interior and memorial finish. G654 takes a high polish, though the grain remains visible, which is what distinguishes it from a true black. Polished material may carry epoxy filler in micro-fissures; this is normal trade practice and does not affect structural integrity, but it should be disclosed.

Flamed (thermal) — the standard exterior finish. Important caveat: G654 greys noticeably after flame treatment. A flamed G654 pavement is a mid-to-dark grey, not a near-black one. Approve a flamed sample separately if the design was chosen from a polished one.

Honed — smooth matt, retaining colour depth without the mirror. Common for interior floors, stairs and cladding.

Bush-hammered, sandblasted and flamed-plus-brushed — textured finishes providing grip for external paving, steps and ramps. The flamed-brushed combination is often used on pool surrounds where a slightly smoother grip surface is wanted.

Natural split — riven face for walling and setts, with high grip and looser dimensional tolerance.

Tumbled — softened edges for small-format paving and setts in landscape and period schemes.

Applications

• Exterior paving — plazas, walkways, patios, driveways. The largest single use, usually flamed, in modules and setts.
• Steps, treads and risers — interior and exterior, cut to drawing.
• Kerbstones and edging — road and landscape work, cut to national profile standards.
• Pool coping and surrounds — flamed bullnose-edge profiles built to pool drawings.
• Memorials and headstones — particularly European and Polish market work.
• Wall cladding and facades — polished, honed and split-face.
• Interior flooring and stairs — polished and honed tiles.
• Window sills, thresholds and copings — cut to size.
• Countertops and vanities — less common than the lighter granites, but specified where a dark neutral surface is wanted.

Sizes, Tolerances and Custom Fabrication

Calibration. For paving laid to a tight joint, calibrated material is close to essential. Thickness variation shows up as lippage that no amount of careful laying removes. Ask for the stated tolerance in millimetres; New G654 production has been reported to hold tighter thickness tolerance than the original stock in some supply chains, though this depends on the factory rather than on the material.

Colour consistency. Because G654 now comes from several deposits, and because New G654 is reported to vary between container loads, colour management matters more than it did for a single-quarry stone. Request bundle photographs in daylight, and for large contracts a dry-lay from production material.

Edge work and profiles. Step nosing, coping bullnose, kerb profiles and memorial shapes are all cut to drawing. Confirm against drawings rather than descriptions — "kerbstone" and "step" cover wide ranges of national conventions.

Specifying Granite G654 on a Project

Most problems with granite G654 orders are specification problems rather than material problems. Four decisions account for most of them.

1. Name the deposit, not just the code

Because G654 now covers material from Changtai stock, replacement quarries in Fujian, and deposits in Cambodia, Hainan and Liaoning, the code alone no longer identifies a source. If the project needs to match existing work, say so and supply a reference sample. If it does not, say that too — because paying a premium for old stock is only worth doing when matching matters.

2. Choose the finish before the colour

Polished and flamed G654 read as two different stones. Polished is a deep, fine-grained near-black; flamed is a mid-to-dark grey. Specifications are frequently written from a polished sample and then ordered in a flamed finish for exterior work, and the result on site is lighter than anyone expected. Approve the finish you will actually receive, on a physical sample, at the size and thickness of the delivered product.

3. Set the colour tolerance explicitly

New G654 is reported to vary between container loads. On a phased project — a cemetery extension, a plaza delivered in stages, a housing scheme built out over years — that variation accumulates across the site in a way it never does within a single container. The control is to reserve material from one production run for the whole project where the volume allows, or to set out a dry-lay sample area and hold subsequent deliveries against it.

4. Decide the fixing method before the stone is cut

Dowel holes, slots, edge rebates and fixing recesses all affect how the pieces are produced, and none of them can be added after fabrication without reworking visible faces. This applies to steps with concealed fixings, copings fixed to a pool shell, and memorials fixed to a base or set into the ground. On memorial work in particular, the fixing detail is usually governed by the cemetery authority's regulations rather than by preference, and those regulations should be obtained before the order is placed rather than after the stone arrives.

A fifth point is worth adding because it recurs. G654 is often chosen as a lower-cost substitute for a black granite, and the substitution is usually fine — grey is a more forgiving surface than black, it shows fewer dust marks and water traces, and it ages gradually rather than in patches. But it is a different colour, and on a project where the client approved a black sample, the delivered grey will read as a discrepancy even though the material meets specification. Where the colour matters, confirm it in writing.

Packing and Container Loading

Packing. Standard export packing is fumigated, seaworthy wooden crates and bundles. Memorial components are packed with foam or plastic padding between polished faces; paving and setts are bundled or supplied in crates or ton bags; mesh-mounted setts are stacked on pallets within crates. Crate timber at 2 cm is used by better factories, against a common practice of 1.5–1.8 cm.

Loading. At a density around 2.7–2.8 g/cm³, G654 loads comparably to the other Chinese granites. Cut-to-size paving at 20–30 mm runs in the region of 300–500 m² per 20ft container for European destinations, less where North American overland weight limits bind. Kerbstones and setts fill a container by weight well before volume and are quoted by piece or linear metre. Memorial work loads by piece or set, and mixed containers of memorials and paving are a common arrangement for importers serving both markets.

Quality Control and Inspection

G654 has two material-specific checks that go beyond the usual dimensional and surface inspection.

1. White veins and toad spots. Inspect the actual production pieces, not a selected sample. Large white veins and dark blemishes are unacceptable in memorial work and can appear in a block while a sample from another block is clean. This is the single most important check on a G654 memorial order.

2. Dyeing. Ask for written confirmation that material is undyed, and test an inconspicuous area of a sample piece. Dye does not penetrate deeply; the treatment is reported to fade within about a year under rain and UV, leaving lighter, patchy stone. A bundle photograph taken in daylight before shipment is the cheapest control, because dyed material looks unnaturally uniform.

3. Colour consistency across the load. Given that the name now covers several deposits, compare bundles against each other, not just against the approved sample.

4. Dimensional and profile accuracy. Thickness, squareness and profile against the stated figures — particularly for kerbstones and steps where the profile is the product.

5. Surface and arris condition. Chipped edges, tool marks and inconsistent finish on the packed material.

6. Test documentation. For projects specifying a standard, obtain the test report for the production lot rather than a generic certificate.

We photograph and record bundles at packing, and third-party pre-shipment inspection can be arranged on request.

Pricing

G654 sits at the economical end of the dark stone range, and the shift from old to new material has kept it there. Published reference points put polished New G654 tiles in the region of US$9–12/m² ex-works, with paving and setts priced by format and finish; memorial work is priced by the set and has been listed from around US$600.

The factors that move a real quotation most:

• Which G654. Old Changtai stock, New G654 from replacement quarries, and the regional variants all carry different costs. Original stock is reported to command very high premiums.
• Format and finish. Flamed paving and sawn setts are the least processed; polished, honed and profiled work costs more.
• Profile complexity. Kerb profiles, step nosing and pool coping edges are all cut-to-drawing and priced accordingly.
• Memorial complexity. Priced by the piece — size, shape, carving and lettering dominate, not area.
• Order quantity and container fill. Quotations are normally against full-container quantities.
• Destination. Overland weight limits determine how much fits in the container and therefore the landed cost per unit.
• Duty and tariff. Trade measures vary by destination and change over time. Confirm rates with a customs broker for the specific entry rather than relying on any published list, including this one.

Ordering Process and Lead Times

1. Specification. Confirm which G654 — old stock, New G654, or a named regional variant — plus finish, thickness, tolerance, and drawings for any profile or memorial work. State the destination market so the correct dimensional convention is used.
2. Samples. Physical samples are available, and for G654 they should be requested in the specific finish you intend to buy. Polished and flamed G654 look like two different stones.
3. Quotation with loading plan. Price alongside the container loading figure, so landed cost is visible before commitment.
4. Pre-production approval. Bundle photographs in daylight; a dry-lay for large paving contracts; a prototype for custom profiles and carved memorial elements; and for memorial work, confirmation that material is undyed and free of large white veins.
5. Production. Standard formats typically run in the region of 10–20 days; custom fabrication and large volumes take longer.
6. Packing and inspection. Bundles photographed; third-party pre-shipment inspection available and recommended for memorial contracts.
7. Shipping. Standard export terms include FOB Xiamen, CFR/CIF and EXW. Common payment terms are a deposit against production with the balance against a copy of the bill of lading, or a letter of credit at sight.
8. Documentation. Commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading and certificate of origin, with fumigation documentation accompanying the packing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is G654 black or grey?

Dark grey. It is a fine-grained diorite with a visible salt-and-pepper grain, and it reads convincingly dark when wet, which is why it is sometimes sold as a black granite. But it is not black in the way Shanxi Black or Absolute Black are, and it turns noticeably grey when flamed.

What is the difference between old G654 and new G654?

The original Changtai quarry in Fujian stopped large-scale mining around 2017–2018. Old G654 is remaining stock or small-vein material and commands high premiums. New G654 comes from replacement quarries, principally around Zhangzhou and Zhangpu, and is slightly lighter with a coarser grain, marginally more absorbent (0.18–0.20% against about 0.16%) and considerably cheaper.

How can I tell if G654 has been dyed?

Dye does not penetrate deeply, so an inconspicuous test on a sample piece will show it. Practically, ask for written confirmation that material is undyed, and inspect bundle photographs taken in daylight — dyed material tends to look unnaturally uniform, because that is what the treatment is for. Dye is reported to fade within about a year under rain and UV, leaving lighter, patchy stone.

Is New G654 suitable for gravestones?

Yes, with quality control. Its published performance is close to the original. The two things to screen for are uncontrollable white veins and dark toad spots, which are unacceptable on a polished memorial face, and dyed material. Inspect the actual production pieces rather than a selected sample, and consider third-party pre-shipment inspection for a memorial contract.

What is the difference between G654 and G684?

G654 is a dark grey granite; G684 is a black basalt. G684 is denser, much less absorbent and genuinely black, and crucially it holds its darkness after flame treatment where G654 turns grey. For flamed dark exterior paving, G684 is usually the stronger choice. For a fine-grained neutral grey, G654 is the more appropriate stone.

Does G654 need sealing?

Not strictly — its water absorption is low, in the region of 0.12–0.36% depending on source and finish. For polished interior and memorial work sealing is rarely done. For exterior paving, cladding and pool coping, a penetrating sealer is a reasonable precaution, and pH-neutral cleaners should be used in place of acidic ones.

Can G654 be used for pool coping?

Yes, and it is a standard application. Flamed or thermal tops provide grip at the waterline, paired with a bullnose, L-shaped or eased edge profile. Straight, curved, corner and return pieces are cut from pool drawings, with cut-to-size references from around 300×300 mm up to 600×1200 mm. Confirm the edge profile before cutting.

What is G654 called in the trade?

Padang Dark, Sesame Black, China Impala, Pepperino Dark and Kobra are all trade names for the same stone. It also carries the newer four-digit code G3554. Because the names are not regulated and the material now comes from several deposits, the code plus the quarry of origin is the reliable identifier.

How much G654 fits in a container?

Cut-to-size paving at 20–30 mm runs in the region of 300–500 m² per 20ft container for European destinations, less where North American overland weight limits apply. Kerbstones and setts fill a container by weight well before volume. Memorial work loads by piece or by set. The exact figure is confirmed with the quotation.