CESSNA PLT INADVERTENTLY ENTERS CLOUDS WHEN ASKED TO REMAIN VFR PRIOR TO RECEIVING CLRNC INTO CLASS C AIRSPACE.

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PROB AROSE WHEN RETURNING FROM WKEND TRIP. I HOLD AN INST RATING BUT AM NOT CURRENT AND DID NOT HAVE CURRENT IFR CHARTS ON BOARD. I DO FLY COMPUTER SIMULATORS FREQUENTLY AND DID HAVE OUT OF DATE CHARTS ON BOARD. PUB APCH INDICATED LIGHT RAIN WITH OCCASIONAL MODERATE SHOWERS BTWN PUB AND COS. I INITIALLY DECIDED TO DIVERT TO PUB TO WAIT FOR SHOWERS TO DIMINISH BUT THEN A LARGE BREAK IN THE CLOUDS THAT EXTENDED FOR SEVERAL MI (15-20) TO THE N PASSED BY THE R SIDE OF THE ACFT. I DECIDED TO SEE IF WE COULD FOLLOW THAT BREAK N TO COS THAT WAS RPTING 2700 FT SCATTERED AND 9 MI VISIBILITY. PUB WAS 5 MI VISIBILITY AT THE TIME. AFTER BEING HANDED OFF TO COS APCH; I WAS TOLD TO EXPECT A STRAIGHT-IN TO RWY 35L. WANTING TO GET POSITIONED FOR THAT APCH. I TURNED MORE WNW INTO PRECIP. FOR 5-8 MINS; PRECIP WAS LIGHT BUT SPATTERING ON WINDSCREEN SO AS TO MAKE FORWARD VISIBILITY REDUCED (SIDE VISIBILITY WAS 4-5 MI). HAVING AN INOP DME I CALLED COS APCH TO GET A VECTOR TO ARPT. I WAS TOLD TO MAINTAIN VFR. SINCE I HAD BEEN DOING CLOUD AVOIDANCE I WANTED THE VECTOR TO DETERMINE HOW MUCH LONGER I HAD TO GO. I LOOKED DOWN TO CHK MY ALT AND WHEN I LOOKED UP I HAD ENTERED A CLOUD. I STARTED TO MAKE A CALL TO APCH TO REQUEST AN APCH AND THEN BROKE CLR (IMC FOR 5-10 SECONDS). MY LNDG WAS UNEVENTFUL FROM THERE ONWARD. LOOKING BACK; I CONTINUE TO DEBATE THE CHOICE OF REQUESTING AN IFR APCH WITH OLD CHARTS OR CONTINUING TO RUN SCUD. I ALSO SHOULD NOT HAVE TRIED TO SET UP THE STRAIGHT-IN APCH BY ABANDONING CLRLY BETTER CONDITIONS.