DH retired last year and the mega corp would not allow him to take any out of the 401K using the 55 rule. We had to keep all of 401k in plan or roll over to IRA. We found a round about way to get money out to live on till he turns 59 1/2. We had quite a bit of company stock (which had to be in your account for a year) that we sold and took out to live on until 59 1/2. We did an NUA.(Net unrealized appreciation). We didn't have to pay a penalty and only had to pay capital gains tax on 2/3 of it at 15%. The NAU is a one time deal when you retire from a company and are 55 or older.
We checked in to the 72T but found it wouldn't allow us to get the amount of money we required to live on. They (Vanguard or your company) have a method of how much you can take out on a 72T. You don't get to decide how much you want to take out. The 72T rule is that you take out equal amounts until you turn 59 1/2 or 5 years, whichever is longer.
Good luck with your decisions.
