Muskogee Blacksmith Wins 'Forged In Fire' History Channel Competition

Nic Overton, a Muskogee blacksmith, followed his passion and won a $10,000 television competition on the History Channel.

Saturday, December 28th 2019, 12:06 am

By: Amelia Mugavero

Every passion starts with a flame - and Nic Overton's passion for blacksmithing has been burning since he was 12 years old.

“I went to a campout in 2008 through a program through my church, and there was a blacksmith workshop there,” Overton told News On 6. “It was love at first sight, as soon as I made the knife that summer.”

Overton turned a childhood pastime into his own business, Nix Knives, that he runs out of his garage. He got his big national debut this December – he made it on the History Channel blacksmith competition Forged in Fire.

The point of the show is to make knives quickly with unlikely items such as barbeque grills. The competitor is judged on quality of durability of the weapon they forge.

Overton said he signed up after one of his customers told him about the show. He said he watched several seasons with his mom – who was his main motivation.

“Mom would be like, go out there and play with knives and get good at it, and maybe you’ll be famous one day,” Overton said with a smile. “The moral of the story is I did it for my mom, and the reason I went on the show was because of her."

He said she was diagnosed with triple breast cancer and died in December three years ago.

“When she passed, it was very devastating. It kind of felt like a bit like the end of the world for me,” Overton said with tears in his eyes. “She would want me to be on the show, and she would want me to win.”

Win is exactly what Overton did. After three rounds of competition against other renowned blacksmiths for expert judges, Overton won his episode with a near perfect pair of throwing axes.

He walked away with $10,000, knowing in his heart he made his mother proud.

“It was a surreal moment, knowing that I accomplished what I came there to do and knowing I made her proud. It was an emotional moment,” said Overton.

Overton said he wants his story to inspire other to chase their dreams. He also said Forged in Fire is not the end. He plans to continue to perfect his craft by pursuing a master smith.

As for the $10,000, he wants to move out of his garage and build a separate forge to run his business.

Nix Knives

Amelia Mugavero

Amelia Mugavero is a multi-media journalist for Oklahoma’s Own News On 6. Amelia was born and raised in Dallas, Texas. Amelia attended the University of Oklahoma for two semesters, and then relocated to the Midwest to attend the University of Illino

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