Tcc problems.. help?

[JDSfastGN]

Well I drove about 150 miles last night and im usually very keen on whats going on with the car especially the tranny, but on the last 20 miles or so i noticed the TCC wasn't engaging. Not sure how long it hadn't been(it had the day before for sure) as I really wasn't paying much attention. Anyways i dropped the pan and took it out. Hooked it up to 12 volts from the battery and you can hear a really small click but its definitely not opening up. So I went and found an older one (still fairly new) and hooked it up to 12 volts and it clicked like it should. It wasn't 100% consistant as i had to jiggle it for a sec for it to click again. Is this normal? or should it be immediate everytime i remove the wire it resets and is ready to open again? Well just to check the cars wiring i hooked it up to my wires under the car and hit my TCC switch. It clicked and then i heard a sizzle and it began to smoke I turned it off and then tried it again, and it clicked but began to smoke again? I know this can't be normal right? Is this what killed my old one? (which was brand new btw) Thanks for any help.
J.D.