How does one check for bad ball joints or a bad tierod. I've got this vibration coming from the front end and its not the wheel balance.

 

Not sure how you can check them to see if they are bad except with a visual check, and that might not tell you anything. Also when is the vibration? Does it get worse the faster you go? Worse when braking? Vibration could be caused by warped rotors. Although it's not the cheapest route, you could always replace the joints and tierods anyway. May not fix the problem but at least you will know you have new parts that will last you a while.

 

to check inner and outer tie rods, jack up the car and put your hands at 3'O'clock and 9 'O'clock on the tire and wiggle it. Have "someone else" lay on the ground and see if there is motion that doesn't transfer to the other side of the steering rack.
While it's up in the air you can slip a big prybar between the lower control arm and the bottom of the knuckle, where the ball joint is and check for play.

 

Well ,,,you might as well suggest to him to replace the whole front end , this way he has all new frt suspension parts that will last for a while ,, I am not trying to be a smart ***,,, but , that is NOT a very solid suggestion .

MASLR.......DO NOT replace anything untill you get it properly diagnosed....contray to what shadow1992 suggested to you ... Shadow 1992 my man,,I sincerely appreciate all the suggestions that you give this forum and all your inputs ,, BUT why would suggest him to start replacing parts ? is that what you would do if it was your car ?? that could be very costly,and a lot of time wasted for nothing ..
I do not like to take guesses with other people money
Here at HAF ,, what we try to have our members do , is to DIAGNOSE, DIAGNOSE DIAGNOSE, before replacing parts , that way the proper part will be replaced to fix the issue properly ,and at a minimal cost ..

I would do the test that Hondadude suggested, that is the proper way to diagnose loose or worn tie rods ( inners and outers ) and loose ball joints .if any are loose replace accordingly ,,,. Also you need to be more specific on the vibration .. when does it occur ? low speed ? while braking ? hwy speed ?
go to our DIY section and read the post ( steering wheel wobble )
let us know ..

 

Its possible that I lost a wheel weight because it just seemed to get worse recently. But the vib is at around 60 mph and then again during braking at around 15mph. I just got my rotors resurfaced but it did'nt help which is why I made this post. I think I'll also try to reinstall my wheels and make sure the lugs are torqued evenly.

 

Just read the DIY. I know for sure I need new pads as well. I'll try some of this stuff and then let you know, Thanks.

 

From your description of the problem;
You could do a slow roll thru a smooth parking lot and see if you feel a tire 'lumping' slight kick of the steering wheel.
You could have a broken belt in one of the tires

 

So for that would I just go to neutral and let the car coast to a stop without applying brakes?