VFR BE24 ON VECTORS FROM BTR APCH; TO FOLLOW CRJ ON FINAL; ELECTS NOT TO COMPLY WITH CTLR'S INSTRUCTIONS BASED UPON PLT'S SPACING JUDGEMENT.

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WHILE INBOUND VFR FOR LNDG AT BTR; ABOUT 15-20 MI OUT; THE BTR APCH CTLR ADVISED THAT WE WERE #2 BEHIND A CRJ WHICH WAS ON A STRAIGHT-IN FINAL FOR RWY 13. WE WERE GIVEN A 090 DEG VECTOR FOR SEQUENCING FOR RWY 13; IN EFFECT A 40 DEG R BASE LEG FOR RWY 13. WE WERE ABOUT 1500 FT; WITH AN UNEVEN CLOUD DECK ABOVE US AT ABOUT 2000-2500 FT. AFTER A FEW MOMENTS WE SPOTTED WHAT APPEARED TO BE THE CRJ IN AND OUT OF THE CLOUDS TO OUR L; WITH THE ARPT TO OUR R. I CHKED 2 OR 3 TIMES TO GET A FEEL FOR THE RELATIVE MOTION OF THE OTHER ACFT. THE CRJ APPEARED TO BE DSNDING; ITS AIRSPD APPEARED GREATER THAN OURS; AND ITS LINE OF FLT APPEARED TO BE CONVERGING WITH OURS. MY ESTIMATE WAS THAT OUR PATHS WOULD MEET IN ABOUT 15-20 SECONDS. DUE TO ITS POS IN AND OUT OF THE CLOUD BASE; MY BELIEF WAS THAT THE CRJ COULD NOT SEE OUR ACFT. AS I WAS ABOUT TO KEY THE MIKE TO REQUEST A L TURN TO 310 DEGS TO AVOID THE OTHER ACFT (FROM MY VANTAGE POINT; IT APPEARED THAT A L TURN TO 310 DEGS WOULD PUT US INTO A 'DOWNWIND' POS RELATIVE TO THE CRJ'S 'FINAL' APCH PATH OF 130); AN ACFT CALLED THE CTLR AND THE CTLR THEN ADVISED US INSTEAD TO TURN R 20 DEGS TO HDG 110 DEGS. WE WERE STILL 10-20 MI FROM THE ARPT. IT APPEARED THE CTLR'S 110 DEG HDG WOULD PLACE OUR ACFT MORE DIRECTLY INTO THE FLT PATH OF THE CRJ; WHICH IS A FASTER ACFT THAN MY BEECH SIERRA. ADDITIONALLY; IT WOULD HAVE POSITIONED US SUCH THAT THE FASTER CRJ WOULD HAVE BEEN BEHIND US AND SLIGHTLY ABOVE US. WE WOULD RAPIDLY BE UNDER THE NOSE OF THE DSNDING CRJ; AND ONCE WE TURNED R; WE WOULD NO LONGER HAVE BEEN ABLE TO SEE THE CRJ IN ORDER TO AVOID IT. SO THERE WE WERE. I COULD SEE THE CRJ; THE CRJ COULDN'T SEE ME. THE CTLR'S VECTOR APPEARED TO BE PLACING US INTO THE PATH OF THE FASTER CRJ; WITH THE VECTOR AT THE SAME TIME REMOVING OUR ABILITY TO SEE AND AVOID THE OTHER ACFT. I CONSIDERED THIS TO BE AN EMER. AS I BEGAN COMPLYING WITH THE CTLR'S R TURN VECTOR TO 110 DEGS; I ADVISED THE APCH CTLR OF THE ABOVE; PROBABLY VERY CRYPTICALLY; AND I ADVISED THAT WE WERE REVERSING COURSE TO 270 DEGS IN ORDER TO GET OUT OF THE FLT PATH OF THE CRJ. I BELIEVE THE CTLR UNDERSTOOD OUR MESSAGE. WHAT I HEARD WAS THE CTLR SAYING 'UNDERSTAND TURNING TO HDG OF 270.' AFTER WE COMPLETED THE TURN; THE APCH CTLR ADVISED THAT WE SHOULD NOT HAVE TAKEN THE ACTION WE DID; SAYING 'YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE DONE THAT.' I APOLOGIZED; AND WAS GIVEN A NEW VECTOR FOR THE SEQUENCE. IN HINDSIGHT; IF THE CTLR WAS ON TOP OF THINGS; I SHOULD HAVE SIMPLY COMPLIED WITH HIS ORIGINAL VECTORS AND RELIED ON HIS EXPERTISE TO AVOID A MIDAIR COLLISION. I HAVE COMMUNICATED WITH THIS CTLR BEFORE; HE IS ALWAYS PROFESSIONAL AND SOUNDS LIKE ONE OF THE MORE EXPERIENCED CTLRS AT BTR. ON THE OTHER HAND; IF THE CTLR HAD BEEN ON TOP OF THINGS; AND IF I WAS #2 FOR LNDG; THEN WHY WAS I GIVEN A VECTOR WHICH HAD ME XING IN FRONT OF THE FASTER CRJ? I BELIEVE THAT MY TEMPORARY LOSS OF CONFIDENCE IN THE CTLR'S ATTN TO THE SITUATION WAS THE SOURCE OF MY TAKING EMER ACTION TO AVOID A COLLISION WITH THE APCHING CRJ. PERHAPS THE CTLR WOULD HAVE KEPT OUR 2 ACFT SEPARATED; AND PERHAPS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN SAFER IF I HAD SIMPLY COMPLIED WITH THE CTLR'S VECTOR. I DO NOT KNOW IF MY EVASIVE ACTION MADE THINGS BETTER OR WORSE. I AM CONCERNED THAT MY EVASIVE ACTION TO AVOID A COLLISION MIGHT HAVE INADVERTENTLY INCREASED THE RISK TO MY PAX AND TO THE OTHER ACFT.