Light on the stick or heavy

What make some airplanes light on the controls and other airplanes heavy on the controls?

Ratio of the surface areas on the controls surfaces (balance area to rest of the control surface area)?

The J-3 is very light on the elevators. The typical PA-18 is not, although some are better than others.

I recently flew a modified J-3 with balanced tailfeathers. It was not like a normal J-3; it required trim changes for circuits around the pattern.

So much goes into that type of question.

Yes, the shape of the controls and their leverage. Balanced control surfaces like the tail. Weight of the airplane. CG location. Airspeed. Square vs round tips. Long ailerons vs short. Large oversized vs small tail.

As far as cubs go, I've seen different cubs, all similar, have different control loads on the stick. So, torque tube overtorqued at the bearings? Control cables too tight? Pulleys with sealed bearings? Modifications of the stick for faster throw (more stick force)? The list goes on.