In the mean time, 22 ammo is available sporadically (and higher priced) online... but still cheaper than loading your own 9mm...
http://www.gunbot.net/ammo/rimfire/22lr/
I just calculated the cost of loading 115 grain FMJ 9mm rounds and it comes out to $.12 per round per 1000.
Online for .22lr runs $.13 per round for the cheapest.
All this without including the brass prices.
Brass is free - that's why it's called - reloading.
Once fired brass is pretty cheap though.
9mm usually goes for ~ $20.00 per 500.
Figure ~ $40.00 per thousand for ~ $.04 per round.
Then divide that figure sown again by the number of times the brass is reused.
Figure 4 times and it's a penny per round.
(9mm brass is pretty stout and can take more than 4 times through the die.
Loss of brass is a bigger thing - which is why I say figure only 4 times)
You're looking at $350-$500 for reloading equipment
That's simply not true at all.
I. like thousands if not tens of thousands over the years, started reloading/handloading with a Lee basic (pound em in with a hammer) reloading kit.
My .38/.357 mag kit ran me about $11.00. My .44/.44mag ran about the same.
I added a dipper set for about $5.00 and a loading manual for about $10.
Both of those items were/are 100% optional.
Later on I added an auto prime for a few bucks.
The little Lee kit was all the equipment needed.
I made thousands of round of very high quality ammunition with just an $11.00 kit.
I made thousands more with the extra dippers - which allowed me to expand to using different powders.
I'm rambling now - but - the statement that you have to invest hundreds of dollars into equipment is false.
A $30.00 kit is all you really need.
Sure, .22LR is hard to find right now but a number of brands are still available in 525 round packs for $20 or less.
Sorry - I forgot this...
I just did this dance w/another member over in the General forum.
Don't assume that because you can find .22lr, locally that everyone can.
In the last 9 months, I've run across exactly one box of bulk .22lr and they wanted like $50 or $70 for it.
Other than that, our shelves have been bare.