Lower ball joints are usually never a problem. A lot of play isn't a good thing. It will cause your good alignment to go bad, it will give your truck bad steering habbits, and can cause bad tire wear.
If there is a lot of play like you said, I'd make it a priority to fix them.
One way to tell is jack up one of your front tires up. Grab the tire at 12 and 6 o'clock, and shake it back and forth. If you have any up/down (vertical) play, your ball joints are bad. If it feels solid, you're ok.
It's normal to have a little play side to side ( 3 and 9 o'clock), and the tire will probably wiggle back and forth a tad. Don't worry about this, worry only about up and down play.
If there is a lot of play like you said, I'd make it a priority to fix them.
One way to tell is jack up one of your front tires up. Grab the tire at 12 and 6 o'clock, and shake it back and forth. If you have any up/down (vertical) play, your ball joints are bad. If it feels solid, you're ok.
It's normal to have a little play side to side ( 3 and 9 o'clock), and the tire will probably wiggle back and forth a tad. Don't worry about this, worry only about up and down play.
