Which brings me to the question, how could I ballast the pig to only draw 30 amps @240v. (on a budget)
Buy an 240VAC arc welder on Craigslist; around here they go for between $50.00 and $100.00. If you get a Miller (Thunderbolt), it has an infinitely adjustable shunt, whereas the Lincoln ("tombstone") units just have different taps; you might find a Montgomery Wards or Century unit; they also work fine, and are often a lot cheaper due to not being a "brand" name. The bonus is that you also get an arc welder to play around with.
The way you hook it up is to short the "Work" and "Electrode" outputs on the front of the welder, then wire the 220VAC feeding the welder in series with your variac. Adjust the shunt or use a different tap until you get the required current limiting.
Jon
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