A BE200 NOSE GEAR FAILED TO EXTEND DURING IFR APCH. ATC REQUESTED HE CANCEL IFR DURING TROUBLESHOOTING. THE PLT THOUGHT HE SHOULD HAVE REMAINED IFR FOR SAFETY REASONS.

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NOSE GEAR UNSAFE OUTSIDE FAF INBOUND IN IMC ON THE ZZZ LDA RWY X APCH. WX WAS RPTED 900 FT SCATTERED WITH 2200 FT BROKEN; 6 MI VISIBILITY AND WORSE TO THE W; OUR APCH AREA. A GAR WAS EXECUTED AND FSS CONFIRMED THE NOSE GEAR DID NOT APPEAR TO BE DOWN AND LOCKED. AN AREA OF VMC AT THE DEP END ALLOWED TIME TO TROUBLESHOOT AND EXECUTE CHKLISTS. AFTER A NUMBER OF MINS ELAPSED DURING CIRCLING MANEUVER; FSS COMMUNICATED THAT CTR WANTED US TO EITHER CANCEL IFR OR GO MISSED. NOT ELECTING TO GO MISSED; BUT TO STAY VMC AND CIRCLE; I SAID WE'D CANCEL IFR BUT THAT I WANTED AN SVFR CLRNC TO REMAIN IN THE AREA AND DEAL WITH EMER. WHEN I CANCELED; IT APPEARED TO ME THE FIELD WAS IFR AND AN SVFR CLRNC WOULD BE REQUIRED. UPON NO RECEIPT OF AN SVFR CLRNC AND I FURTHER QUERIED FSS AS TO THE STATUS OF THE FIELD. THE FSS RPTED VFR WX CONDITIONS. EMER EQUIP WAS REQUESTED ABOUT 1/2 WAY THROUGH THE TIME CIRCLING AND WE WERE TOLD THEY HAD BEEN NOTIFIED AND WERE STANDING BY. I WANTED TO REMAIN ON AN IFR FLT PLAN AND KEEP IFR SEPARATION DURING THE EMER; HOWEVER; CTR -- PROBABLY FOR SAFETY REASONS -- DID NOT ALLOW IT. I THINK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SAFER AND LESS OF AN INTRUSION TO ALLOW US TO REMAIN IFR.