This must be pretty common, because mine does this too. Actually I find the loader controls to be imprecise and jerky. I've run loaders and backhoes for years, but my own compact tractor makes me feel like a novice.
I find the boom lift and lower to be difficult too. Usually it raises and lowers easily and smoothly, but every once and a while, when lowering with a load, the boom just drops at the slightest touch. And as said before, the bucket dump sometimes takes extra effort to dump.
A quick question for you guys. Would this loader handle a bigger bucket? I'm thinking a of building a snow bucket for it.