the present invention provides a manipulable or reconfigurable dental model system and methods for its use to model a series of tooth configurations corresponding to sequential tooth movements during an orthodontic treatment . when a patient undergoes orthodontic treatment , teeth and bite configurations are realigned in a series of stages . each stage represents a new pattern or dental configuration that will eventually lead to a proper final positioning of the entire dentition . progress from the initial configuration , through the intermediate stages and finally to the final configuration may be accomplished using any one or a combination of different dental appliances . of particular interest to the present invention , many of these appliances may be made using a dental mold representing the patient &# 39 ; s dental configuration . in particular , thermoformable plastic positioning appliances which fit over the patient &# 39 ; s teeth may be formed over a three - dimensional mold of the patient &# 39 ; s dentition . when successive appliances are used throughout treatment to reposition the teeth from initial to final configuration , a new mold has typically been produced to fabricate the appliance for each stage . the present invention provides an apparatus and methods which employ a manipulable or reconfigurable mold to model patient dentition and gingiva at each stage of treatment .