Been looking at the Princeton Tec Fuel and Remix Pro. The floody 3xAAA Fuel for my old lady, and the dual beam CR123 Remix Pro for myself. She likes flood, I like options. 
I wish they were both CR123. 3xAAA kinda sucks. 3xAnything kinda sucks.
Does anyone have experience with either? I searched and didn’t find squat. I know Princeton Tec brand has a following. Wondering about these particular models.
I have the fuel, it's a pretty nice little light. I still reach for my more powerful ones though...
Most headlamps that use 5mm LED have narrow beams up close with very little spill. The Fuel and the Remix secondary beam are no exceptions. They look a little bit floodier at a distance, but up close those beams are only about 20 degrees wide and are a pain to use if you need wide angle coverage.
Get a Zebralight H502 if you want 120 degrees of real flood or a H51F/H31F is you want 90 degrees of semi-flood.
I love ZL but for the wife that’s out of budget. Might get one for me.
Can you recommend something light, reliable, and floody up close for $25 or less?
There aren't a whole lot of options for $25. I guess you could buy a Fuel and put scotch tape over the lens. That helps the beam noticeably, but also decreases output. Also, I always did worry about the flimsy battery door on the Fuel.