MULTIPLE MINOR DISCREPANCIES PLUS AN MEL MISUNDERSTANDING.

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ON OUR FLT FROM SIG TO VQS; I PICKED UP MR X AN FAA SAFETY INSPECTOR FROM FSDO 21. UPON ARR IN VIEQUES; HE INFORMED ME THAT THERE WERE 4 DISCREPANCIES WITH THE ACFT. ITEMS THAT WERE INOP; THE R ENG OIL TEMP GAUGE; THE R MAIN TANK FUEL GAUGE; THE L TURN COORDINATOR AND THE EXHAUST TEMP GAUGE WHEN SELECTED TO THE REAR ENG. I POLITELY INFORMED HIM THAT; WHILE THE R OIL TEMP GAUGE DID OCCASIONALLY JUMP TO R FULL DEFLECTION FOR A FRACTION OF A SECOND; IT WORKED ON THE GND PERFECTLY AND IT WAS POSSIBLE TO GET AN ACCURATE READING FROM IT IN FLT ALSO; AND THAT THE R MAIN TANK FUEL GAUGE; WHILE IT DID SWING AND OCCASIONALLY GO TO FULL R DEFLECTION (WHICH I CONSIDER TO BE NORMAL FOR FUEL GAUGES ON THIS CLASS OF ACFT); WORKED AND IT WAS POSSIBLE TO GET AN ACCURATE READING FROM IT ON THE GND AND IN THE AIR; THAT THE R TURN COORDINATOR WAS WORKING (HE SAID IT WAS 'ERRATIC') WITH NO EXCESSIVE BANK INDICATED ON TURNS ON THE GND; NO RED FLAG; THAT THE L TURN COORDINATOR HAD NO RED FLAG AND DID NOT INDICATE EXCESSIVE BANK ON GND TURNS; HOWEVER; IT DID SEEM THAT IT DID NOT INDICATE MORE THAN 5 DEGS BANK DURING FLT SO I WOULD WRITE THAT ITEM AS A MECH IRREGULARITY IN THE ACFT MAINT LOG; AND THAT THE EXHAUST TEMP GAUGE (WHICH APPARENTLY WAS NOT OP WHEN SELECTED TO REAR ENG HAD BEEN SELECTED TO R ENG DURING TAXI AND TKOF. AND WAS THEREFORE 'OFF.' AND THAT 'INOP' MEANT 'NOT WORKING' AND; BY THAT DEFINITION; NOT ALL THESE ITEMS WERE INOP. MR X BECAME INCENSED; TOLD ME THAT HE HAD SO MANY YRS OF EXPERIENCE IN THIS BUSINESS AND HOW DARE I TRY TO TELL HIM THAT THESE ITEMS WERE NOT INOP. I TOLD HIM THAT SINCE HE WAS WITH THE FAA I HAD NO CHOICE BUT TO GND THE ACFT FOR ALL THE ITEMS HE INDICATED; BUT THAT I DID SO UNDER PROTEST AND THAT; IN MY BEST JUDGMENT; DOING SO WAS NOT ACTING IN THE BEST INTERESTS OF MY COMPANY; SAFETY OR ANY FAA REG. WHEN I RETURNED FROM LUNCH; I WAS ASSIGNED TO ANOTHER ACFT TO INCLUDE MR. X BACK TO SAN JUAN. AFTER THE TKOF CHKLIST; MR. X INFORMED ME THAT THE FLAP INDICATOR WAS NOT OPERATING. I CHKED IT AND IT INDICATED UP AND FULL DOWN CORRECTLY; HOWEVER; IN THE TKOF POS; THE NEEDLE HUNG BELOW THE 25 DEG WHITE TKOF ARC. I CAREFULLY CHKED AND EVERY OTHER ITEM OF GAUGES AND OPERATING MECHANISMS WERE OPERATING CORRECTLY ON THAT ACFT. I WAS AWARE FROM OUR OPS MANUAL SECTION V (COMPANY OPERATING PROCS) THAT THE FLAP POS INDICATOR WAS LISTED IN THE MEL; SO I PLACARDED THE INDICATOR 'INOP' THE ACFT AS 'DAY VFR ONLY' AND DEPARTED. DURING THE FLT; THE R OIL TEMP GAUGE INTERMITTENTLY INDICATED FULL SCALE R DEFLECTION (FOR A BRIEF TIME); HOWEVER; IT WOULD RETURN TO THE GREEN ARC AND INDICATE CORRECTLY. ON ARR IN SAN JUAN; I GNDED THE ACFT FOR THE OIL TEMP GAUGE AND WROTE IT IN THE ACFT MAINT LOG. AFTER DISCUSSIONS WITH MR. X; IT WAS DETERMINED THAT THERE WAS A DISCREPANCY BTWN THE ACFT MEL AND THE COMPANY OPS MANUAL; AND THAT THE DATE OF THE ACFT MEL (WHICH DID NOT INCLUDE THE FLAP POS INDICATOR) WAS MORE CURRENT. I AM NOW AWARE THAT THE MORE CURRENT OF THE 2 DATES IS APPLICABLE; ALTHOUGH I DID NOT KNOW THE 2 MEL LISTS WERE DIFFERENT AT THE TIME. I ADDED THE FLAP INDICATOR TO THE ACFT MAINT LOG MECHANICAL IRREGULARITY LIST. I ALSO BECAME AWARE THAT; ALTHOUGH AN ITEM IS ON THE MEL; THAT IS FOR DEPS FROM ARPTS WHERE MAINT IS NOT AVAILABLE (NOT OUR MAINT BASE) ALTHOUGH I WAS OF THE OPINION THAT MAINT WOULD NOT BE AVAILABLE SINCE; AT TIME OF DEP; 30 PERCENT OF OUR FLEET HAD BEEN GNDED. IN THE FUTURE; I WILL CANCEL FLTS WITH MEL DISCREPANCIES FROM OUR MAINT BASE UNTIL THEY HAVE BEEN CORRECTED.