Rollover Worries - Gold IRA Tax Question (Atlanta based)

• •I generally know the rules, but when it comes to *my own money*, suddenly I’m second-guessing everything.
• •I'm sitting on about $180k in an old 401k from a previous job, and I'd like to get maybe 20-25% of that into physical gold within an IRA.
• •My main concern is avoiding any nasty surprises come tax season next year.

So, I’ve been looking into rolling over a portion of my traditional IRA into a Gold IRA, and honestly, the tax stuff is making my head spin a little, even as an accountant. I generally know the rules, but when it comes to my own money, suddenly I’m second-guessing everything. I'm sitting on about $180k in an old 401k from a previous job, and I'd like to get maybe 20-25% of that into physical gold within an IRA.

My main concern is avoiding any nasty surprises come tax season next year. I understand the direct rollover is the way to go to avoid withholding and the 60-day rule headaches, but are there any common pitfalls people fall into that I should be aware of? Like, is there anything specific about the custodians or the gold dealers themselves that could trigger an unexpected taxable event? I'm based in Atlanta, so thinking about Georgia state taxes too, not just federal.

I'm looking at a few different providers and they all seem reputable, but I want to make sure I’m asking all the right questions about the reporting. I definitely don't want to accidentally treat this as a distribution. My goal is purely to diversify and hedge against inflation; I’m not planning on taking any distributions anytime soon. Anyone here with experience doing a similar amount, say in the $30k-$45k range, have specific advice or things they wish they knew beforehand?

Would appreciate any insights, especially from folks who’ve navigated this successfully. Thanks in advance!