Currently, --fake-super is documented as emulating root powers on the filesystem, and accordingly, it gives the current user all permissions on the real files (though see bug 7111). However, it emulates some attributes that are not really privileged: POSIX ACLs and ownership by a group to which the current user belongs. I would like it to use default permissions for the real files, at which point it would become a full file-attribute emulation layer. This would allow multiple users to share a fake-super tree by establishing appropriate default permissions.
I agree. I am running rsync with --perms, but I want --fake-super to store the original permissions in the xattr, and not change the real mode of the destination file. What is more, I am trying to force the real mode of the file by adding --chmod, in order to make it group readable, but this affects the mode stored in the xattr! There is no way to separate the two modes, the one in the xattr and the real-mode. They are always set to the same value AFAICT. Opened related bug #14319: -M--fake-super --chmod changes the permissions stored in the xattr.