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Well as I suppose you are aware U.S. Army airborne uniforms and equipment is of tremendous interest since the current WWII reenacting craze got started and got a big boost from "Band of Brothers." As a consequence original items are bringing premium prices and unscrupulous dealers (aren't they all?) have fixed up original equipment with patches and markings to enhance the marketability. I owned many years ago an original jacket that for some reason the lower pockets had been removed (the flaps were still there but the pockets had been removed. I also owned a pretty nice replica that I can't explain why I acquired it, but it sold for a decent profit on eBay as a replica.

I recall seeing a web site, that I lost the link to when I had to rebuild the operating program on my computer, that showed several original M-42 jackets to show the variation of the shade of the color in identified originals. In any case tracking down that web site may be of interest to you.

There is a web site dedicated to collectors of U.S. militaria that I hesitate to refer you to for a couple of reasons. 1. I was suspended from membership for political incorrectness, and the expiration of the suspension has long passed, but the people that run the web site won't restore my membership. 2. The people that are into uniforms, in particular airborne are prone to "spot the fake" (their word not mine) at the slightest hint of deviation from what they think the genuine article should look, smell, and feel like. Anyway I suggest you peruse the forum titled UNIFORMS. The web site has forums dedicated to discussing dealers and "fake" items that I caution you to view with a great deal of cynicism. You may want to short cut your search for relevant discussions by using the search engine.

http://www.usmilitariaforum.com/

There are perhaps a half dozen dealers that cater to the reenactors that don't seem to have any problem marking their replica equipment in a way that an unsophisticated collector might take to confirm the item as original. Some dealers are beginning to mark their products "REPLICA" but there are allot of replica uniforms and equipment that wasn't marked in any way to indicate it was a replica.

Your best defense is to obtain reliable reference books (of which airborne uniforms and equipment books I am uninformed) and communicate with sophisticated collectors (not dealers) and examine as many examples of identified original uniforms and equipment as you can find.

BTW when asking for advice on anything good detailed images are very helpful to the people that know the material and can make educated assessment of the item(s). On the other hand they seem to also attract the bubbas that like to "spot the fake." I've seen long forums discussing some of the same details you mentioned, like the maker of the zippers and snap fasteners. A feature of the M42 jacket that it seems is difficult to make correct is the zippered pocket for the knife in the seam.

Good luck in finding the answers you seek about the jacket, and let us know what you find out..also please post some images.