TECHNOLOGY FOCUS - ORGANIC CHEMISTRY - Preferred Method: The solvent is removed from the curable composition using a drying gas, a temperature controlled platen, or a combination of a gap dryer (206) and a multi-zone drying gas oven (208). The step of heating the curable coating is by using a drying gas with a flow, where the flow of the drying gas is quiescent during the step of heating the curable coating. The substrate is supplied via a roll, an extrusion process, a casting process, or in the form of a sheet. The method further comprises: a step of surface treating the substrate prior to coating the curable composition; curing the curable coating after the curable coating has exhibited leveling flow, where the gas flow during the curing step is quiescent; and cooling the curable coating after the curable composition has exhibited leveling flow. The curable composition is coated onto the substrate using a coating die, a roll coater, a gravure coater, or a spray coater. The curable coating has visible surface defects prior to exhibiting leveling flow and has a reduced amount of visible surface defects after exhibiting leveling flow. The curable coating is heated using radiant heating, infrared heating or microwave heating. The curable coating is cured using visible light, UV radiation, UV-LED radiation, electron beam or thermal energy. Preferred Components: The curable composition comprises a multifunctional acrylate. The solvent is an organic solvent, which is toluene, tetrahydrofuran, acetone, isopropyl alcohol, methanol, ethanol, ethyl acetate, water, and/or methylethyl ketone. EXAMPLE - Coating composition A (comprising (in parts by wt.): SR355 (tetrafunctional acrylate monomer) (99); Esacure one (RTM: UV photoinitiator) (1); MX300 (RTM: Poly(methylmethacrylate)) (3 micrometer diameter) (2); and methyl ethyl ketone (341)) was coated onto a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate at a level of 23 wt.% solids using a stirred pressure pot at a thickness of 1.6, 1.8, and 2 micrometers. An air knife placed right after the coating die was used to induce mottle caused by air turbulence. The substrate was corona treated prior to applying the coating composition. The coating was gas dried at 120 degrees F (at zone 1) and at 72 degrees F (at zone 2) and maintained in a gas drying oven at 150 feet/minute and again gas dried at 120 degrees C. There was no mottle in the coated substrate.