Im tired of shooting 5.56 and Ive tried AR variants in 5.45 and 300blk and didnt really fall in love. 5.45 was just a plinker and considering potential 7n6 ban Im glad i got out of the game when i did. 300blk i loved the idea but was underwhelmed once i got it. Seemed like a great caliber for suppressing or showing at a bbq. But 6.8 seems like it might be just right. Not too big, not too small.

So I know little to nothing about 6.8. What mags are best? Is ammo easy to find locally (Academy, Walmart, Cabelas) or does it have to be ordered online? What kind of accuracy and distance can I expect out of the round?

ARP is the barrel you want....and they are instock...for now. ARP is one of the pioneers of the caliber knows his stuff.
Ar15performance.com
Bison and wilson combat make a decent barrel too.

Distance is out to about 400yds max for hunting

Ammo is getting easier to find. Most academy stores have it as does cabelas. I would stay away from Remington brand ammo. It tends to be under powered compared to SSA and Hornady. Fusion is getting great reviews too.
Go to 68forums and read read read. It will have any info you seek about it.

PRI makes some of the best 6.8 mags

I love the 6.8, it's a fantastic hunting cartridge out to 300, yes it will work past that but inside 300 is where it shines. My experience has been that it kills pigs and hogs just as well as a 308, 270, 25-06, whatever..

ARP, Bison Armory or Wilson Combat for barrels
I have owned all 3, they are all built right.
Been running a Wilson Combat the last 4 years and have no plans to change.

PRI for the mag win, I use the 10rd ones, they have been perfect.

Best factory ammo is the Wilson Combat 95g TTSX load or the Hornady 120sst.

WOA also makes a wonderful 6.8 bbl

They do great work

I have 3 Wilson Combats. They are great.

Just go straight to an AR10 in 308. I did the same thing you did. Used my 5.56 for plinking like a .22 cal. Then just jumped to a 308. Glad I made the the jump.

I would but already have that covered, plus AR10s are generally quite heavy. I'm looking for a little bit lighter.

Anyone have experience with PSA and their 6.8 uppers? I know they're not high-end but if I decide to experiment in 6.8 I'd rather start with budget build and if I fall in love can always upgrade later.

For the kind of value that AR15 Performance delivers, I would be hard-pressed to recommend anything else. If you put their barrel and bolt (which is really the whole rifle) into an inexpensive upper receiver and don't go crazy on your muzzle devices, gas blocks or handguards you should be able to stay right around $600, upgrade the small, less important pieces later.

Note that the 18" 6.8 upper at PSA doesn't come with a BCG or charging handle... so add about $200 unless you plan on cannibalizing a handle and bolt carrier.

With an ARP barrel only $200 and being the best out there I feel that is about as BUDGET as it gets. If you start with a low quality barrel you may not be happy and blame it on the caliber rather than the budget barrel you saved $30-$50 on.

Oh yeah....and Black Hole Weaponry does make a great barrel too

Free stripped upper with BHW barrel. I just picked up one of these in 300 blk. Real happy with fit and finish on both, haven't had a chance to shoot it yet.

http://www.surplusammo.com/blackhole-wea...11-poly-barrel/

PSA has run a couple 6.8 uppers on sale for under $400 with bcg last couple weeks.

Yeah thats what im looking at. $400 for complete upper would leave me some $ for ammo and see if I like the caliber. I dont wanna build a $600+ upper just to find out I dont like it and Ive found it harder to sell self-assembled uppers over factory uppers. Thats just been my experience

I run a 14.5 PSA upper. Mine took a little break in but I had bad mags in it that wouldn't feed right. It's a good upper and fairly accurate with minute of pig groups.