Originally Posted by chrisgt

You actually need to check balljoint play without the suspension drooped, jack the car up by the control arm and check for up/down play in the wheel. It helps to use a pry bar or something to lift the wheel since it's a heavy assembly.

The balljoints are under load when the suspension is at full droop and you may not notice play in them even if they're bad.

Here's a quick video on youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93ib1nxE0Ao

Originally Posted by Squiggle Dog

... I could not find play in any single component, yet the alignment shop said everything was sloppy and worn-out. So it seems that diagnosing slop oneself isn't very accurate.