ACR BEING VECTORED AROUND FOR WX AND TFC COMPLAINS ABOUT ATC SVC.

Narrative

ON ARRIVING AT BWI; AFTER MUCH VECTORING DUE TO TFC AND TSTMS AT BWI; WE WERE TURNED TO INTERCEPT THE ILS FOR RWY 33L AT BWI. AFTER BEING CLRED FOR THE APCH AND OUTSIDE THE 'SPLAT' FIX; THE CTLR TOLD US TO HOLD AT 15 MI FIX ON THE 33L ILS AND MAKE R TURNS WITH 8 MI LEGS. (WE WERE ONE OF MANY ACFT BEING VECTORED AROUND). THE ACTION BY THE CTLR TOOK PLACE WHILE WE WERE ON THE 33L LOC INBOUND TO THE RWY; AND APPROX 20 MI OUT. WE INITIATED OUR R TURN AT THE 15 MI FIX FOR THE HOLD ON THE 33L LOC AT 23 MI WE STARTED OUT R TURN BACK TO THE FIX. AT THIS POINT WE GOT A 'TCASII TA' AT 5000 FT; AT APPROX OUR 10-11 O'CLOCK POS (WE WERE ALSO AT 5000 FT). MY COPLT QUESTIONED THE CTLR ABOUT THIS TFC. THE CTLR SAID HE HAD NO CONTACT. THEN THE CTLR SAID WE SHOW YOU PAST YOUR HOLDING LEG; YOU'RE AT 26 MI (WE WERE FLYING AT 230 KTS IN THE HOLD). WE TOLD THE CTLR WE WERE IN OUR TURN BACK TO THE FIX (THE CTLR WAS CTLING MANY ACFT). A NEW CTLR TOOK OVER AND SAID THAT WE WERE GOING TO HOLD AT ANOTHER LOCATION DUE TO TSTMS AT THE ARPT; AND ALSO TO CHANGE RWYS ON US. WE WERE TOLD TO HOLD AT A NEW FIX OFF THE BAL VOR THIS TIME. WE TURNED TO THE HDG GIVEN US. BEFORE WE GOT TO THE NEW FIX THE CTLR SAID HE WAS GOING TO VECTOR US FOR AN ILS TO RWY 10 AT BWI. WE WERE THEN TURNED IN FOR RWY TO SHOOT AN ILS. IT WAS VISUAL ON THE W SIDE OF THE ARPT BY NOW. WE WERE THEN TURNED R OVER THE OM TO MAKE A VISUAL APCH TO RWY 10 (BWI). AT THIS POINT I TOLD THE COPLT TO TELL THE CTLR WE WERE BREAKING OFF THE APCH BECAUSE WE WERE TOO HIGH AND TOO CLOSE IN. THE WHOLE EPISODE; AFTER MULLING OVER WHAT TOOK PLACE INDICATED TO ME THAT THERE WERE TOO MANY ACFT TO HANDLE (THE CTLRS WERE TRYING TO PLAY CATCH-UP WITH ALL THE ACFT. SOME CLRED FOR VISUAL APCHS; SOME FOR ILS APCHS). TOO MANY CHANGES IN HDG; TYPE OF APCHS; AND ACFT. THE TSTMS JUST DIDN'T POP-UP OUT OF NOWHERE; THE WX WAS THERE BEFORE WE ARRIVED. THE MANPWR WASN'T THERE TO DO A CALM COLLECTED JOB.